Question

For the following right triangle, find the side length x. 12 16 х

Answer 1

Answer:

20

Step-by-step explanation:

which side is x ? the Hypotenuse - the side opposite of the 90 degree angle ? or is it one side touching the 90 degree angle ?

that is important. we need to know which side is the Hypotenuse to make the right calculations.

if I assume x is the Hypotenuse, then the calculation follows Pythagoras like this

x² = 12² + 16² = 144 + 256 = 400

x = sqrt(400) = 20

but just in case, if x is a side touching the 90 degrees angle, then the would look like this (depending on which of the other sides is the Hypotenuse)

either

12² = 16² + x²

144 = 256 + x²

-112 = x²

that did not work. a square root of a negative number did not work for actual distances.

or

16² = 12² + x²

256 = 144 + x²

112 = x²

x = sqrt(112) = 10.58