Solve for x: 2 (6 - x) = x (x + 5) Expand out terms of the left hand side: 12 - 2 x = x (x + 5) Expand out terms of the right hand side: 12 - 2 x = x^2 + 5 x Subtract x^2 + 5 x from both sides: -x^2 - 7 x + 12 = 0 Multiply both sides by -1: x^2 + 7 x - 12 = 0 x = (-7 ± sqrt(7^2 - 4 (-12)))/2 = (-7 ± sqrt(49 + 48))/2 = (-7 ± sqrt(97))/2: Answer: x = (-7 + sqrt(97))/2 or x = (-7 - sqrt(97))/2
It depends if 24cm is the long dimension or the short one...it's the answer if 24cm is the short dim. if 24cm is the long dimension then the answer is 24/1.618
