I saw the image. It formed 2 right triangles. 1 small and 1 big. small triangle has a long leg of 4 feet and hypotenuse of 6 feet. big triangle has a long leg of (x) and hypotenuse of 6 + 12 ft.
proportion:
4/6 = x / 18 4 * 18 = 6x 72 = 6x 72/6 = x 12 = x
The distance from the base of the stairs to the tallest column is 12 feet.
