Question

Peter is making an "X marks the spot" flag for a treasure hunt. The flag is made of a square white flag with sides of 12 inches. He will make the "X" by stretching red ribbon diagonally from corner to corner. How many inches of ribbon will Peter need to make the "X"? Round your answer to the nearest inch.

Answer 1

To answer this question you can use the Pythagorean Theorem Which states that a squared plus b squared equals c squared. C is the hypotenuse of a triangle (one of the diagonals forming the X). The hypotenuse is the side directly across from the right angle. A and b are both 12, so 12 squared plus 12 squared is 288. To solve for c, find the square root of 288, which is approximately 17 inches. Double this (one for each line in the X and you need approximately 34 inches of ribbon. Always label your answers!