Help me figure out this geometry question.?

Question

There is a rectangular object in which the left vertical side is 1.4inches, the top horizontal side is 1.86 inches, the right vertical side is 0.83 inches, and the bottom horizontal side is unknown. Is it possible to figure out what the the unknown side is with only this information? No angles are given or any other info.

I didn't mean it was a rectangle, just that it resembled one (4 sided shape).

Answer 1

Strictly speaking, the other posters are right: this is not a rectangle (opposite sides must be equal), and without knowing the angles, you don't have enough information to solve it.

But I'm going to try anyway. You said it's "a rectangular object". That gives me a hint. Maybe, being (somewhat) rectangular, it might have some right angles. In fact, if the left side and the right side are really vertical (straight up and down), then they're parallel lines.

Also, if the top horizontal line is really horizontal (level side-to-side), then it forms right angles with the vertical sides.

Now, if all that is true, then this figure is a , which is sort of rectangular, and, we can figure out the unknown side.

Please note that I making some assumptions here, based on what you've written, because this is the only thing that makes sense to me that will allow us to get an answer.

Okay. The left vertical side is 1.4 inches, which is 0.57 inches longer than the right vertical side. Going down the right side to where it connects to the bottom, you can draw a line, 1.86 inches long, over to the left vertical, parallel to the top horizontal. (Hope this makes sense to you.)

Once you've drawn this new horizontal line, at the bottom of your diagram, you have a where the left leg is 0.57 inches, the top horizontal leg (the one you just drew) is 1.86 inches, and the hypoteneuse on the very bottom is that unknown side you're trying to get.

If x is the unknown side, we use the Pythagorean Theorem to get

x^2 = 1.86^2 + 0.57^2 = 3.4596 + 0.3249 = 3.7845

Taking the square root of both sides, we find that the unknown side, x, equals 1.945 inches.

There's no guarantee that this answer is right. It depends on the assumptions we made. But it be right, because the assumptions were reasonable. In any event, it's the best we can do with the information we have.

Answer 2

Well, first of all, this isn't a rectangle. In a rectangle, the two opposite sides are parallel and of the same length, so you couldn't have a right side .83 inches and a left side 1.4 inches.

If you knew the angles at the top, you could find the length, even if it isn't a rectangle, but without that, you're out of luck.

Answer 3

yes
you cut out the rectangle part, and are left with a triangle. left side minus right side = 1.4 - .83 = .57. .57 squared plus 1.86 squared equals your missing side squared. oh yes, and if you type in sqrt(.57^2 + 1.86^2) into google you will get an answer :D

Answer 4

Do you mean quadrilateral (i.e., 4 sided figure)?

Then no. But you could put bounds on what it could be. Namely if x is the 4th side then 0 < x < 1.86+0.83+1.4=4.09 inches

If you mean rectangle then your problem is ill defined.

Answer 5

yes first you have to calculate for the length of the diagonal line from left to right, top to bottom.

let d=length of the diagonal line

d=sqrt(1,86^2 + 0.83^2)
d=2.04

then now you can compute for the unknown side.

let x= length of the bottom side.

x= sqrt(d^2-1,4^2)
= sqrt(2.04^2 - 1.4^2)
= 1.48

Answer 6

Not Aristotle, DaVinci. Vitruvian Man

Answer 7

based on what you've said, this seems to be more of a quadrilateral rather than a rectangle. There is no way of solving this without more info. Sorry.

Answer 8

With the information provided, there is no way to figure out the geometry problem.

Answer 9

With this information we cannot find the fourth side.

Answer 10

well it should also be 1.86 if it is parallel to the top horizontal.