Math  /  Geometry

QuestionSides aa and bb represent the two legs of a right triangle, and c represents the hypotenuse. Find the length of the unknown side. a=14 in., c=50 in. a=14 \text { in., } c=50 \text { in. }
The length of the third side is \square \square (Simplify your answer. Type an exact answer, using radicals as needed.)

Studdy Solution

STEP 1

What is this asking? We're given the lengths of two sides of a right triangle and need to find the length of the missing side! Watch out! Remember, cc is *always* the hypotenuse, the longest side, in the Pythagorean theorem.

STEP 2

1. Set up the Pythagorean Theorem
2. Solve for the unknown side

STEP 3

Alright, let's **kick things off** with the famous Pythagorean Theorem: a2+b2=c2a^2 + b^2 = c^2.
This tells us how the sides of a right triangle relate to each other.

STEP 4

We know that a=14a = 14 in. and c=50c = 50 in.
Let's **plug these values** into our equation: (14)2+b2=(50)2(14)^2 + b^2 = (50)^2

STEP 5

Time to **crunch some numbers**!
Squaring both (14)(14) and (50)(50) gives us: 196+b2=2500196 + b^2 = 2500 Remember, 1414=19614 \cdot 14 = 196 and 5050=250050 \cdot 50 = 2500.

STEP 6

Now, let's **get** b2b^2 **by itself**.
We can do this by subtracting 196196 from both sides of the equation: 196196+b2=2500196196 - 196 + b^2 = 2500 - 196 b2=2304b^2 = 2304

STEP 7

Almost there!
To find bb, we need to take the **square root** of both sides: b2=2304\sqrt{b^2} = \sqrt{2304} b=48b = 48So, the length of the missing side, bb, is **48 inches**!

STEP 8

The length of the unknown side is 4848 inches.

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