Question

An isosceles trapezoid has a perimeter of 49 miles. Its shorter base measures 12 miles and its longer base measures 23 miles. The two remaining sides have the same length; what is that length?

Answer 1

The perimeter is 49 miles, which means that all the sides added up must equal 49. Let's write and equation with the information given, where x is the magnitude of the two sides:

$23+12+2x=49$

Simplify this a little bit to get x on one side:

$35+2x=49$

$2x=14$

Divide by 2 on both sides, and your answer is:

$x = 7$

Therefore, the length of the two sides of the trapezoid are both 7 miles.