The formula for the area of a rectangle is length times width, or A=l·w
The Area A=256 The width is w The lenght is given as 6 feet less than 4 times its width, or in math language this is l=4w-6
Let's go back to the formula A=l·w ⇒ 256=(4w-6)·w simplify ⇒ 256=4w²-6w put everything on the same side and set the equation equal to zero ⇒ 4w²-6w-256=0 Solve for w using quadratic formula
You are going to get two answers after using the quadratic formula: one positive and one negative. Just remember it doesn't make sense to get a negative answer if we are talking about width, so use the positive answer only
Width is x Length is 4x-6 total area=256 256=length*width 256=x*(4x-6) 256=4x^2-6x 256=4x^2-6x 0=4x^2-6x-256 You can solve the equation- you should get (3+-√1033)/4- Hope this helps