Question

The dimensions of a square are altered so that one dimension is increased by 7 feet and the other is decreased by 2 feet. The area of the resulting rectangle is 90 square feet. Find the original area of the square

Answer 1

I got 64 square feet.

My work is shown in the image.

For possible questions:

1: you can find x+7 and x-2 because the sides of the square can be measured as x, and x+7 means 7 more than the original; x-2 means 2 less than the original.

2: solved via factoring. Not sure if you've learned it or not.

3: reject the negative numbers because you can't have negative sides in a square.