I need a real world problem that uses the Pythagorean Theorem (c squared=a squared + b squared).?

Question

I need a real world problem that uses the Pythagorean Theorem (c squared=a squared + b squared) for my math project.

Answer 1

Santa Claus , who is tiring , has to deliver a parcel to a 4 th storey flat.
He stands on the opposite pavement at a horizontal distance of 20m from the building and looks up.
He scratches his head and says to one of the elves, " I wonder what the vertical height of that flat is? "
The elf says "Don`t look at me because I am knackered. However I have an angle measurer and using this , we can work out the height you will have to climb."
Santa says, " You are a right smart little elf--but how do you do that?"
Elf says, "Using this angle measurer, the angle of elevation is 60° and the horizontal distance is 20m. We can now use Tricky Nometry to find the height."
Santa says , " My you really are a right smart little elf, but you will have write it out for me."
The elf did this as follows:-
tan 60° = h / 20
h = 20 tan 60°
h = 34.7 m

Elf said , "The height is 35.7 m and, since we are in America, this is 117 ft to the nearest whole number. Why they don`t go metric I will never know"

Santa said, " My elf that is really brilliant, now nip up the stairs with the parcel or you won`t get a lift back to Lapland. Are we metric in Lapland? "
"I think I will try to learn some of that Tricky Nometry in the new year. "

PS
I should have used Pythagoras but never mind!
Best wishes.

Answer 2

Ralph the roofer needs to figure out how many shingles to order for a roof that is 48' from South to North when measured along the ground. The North end is 16' higher than the South end. What distance must the shingles cover going up the slope of the roof?

Answer 3

An electric circuit has a real resistance of 400 ohms and a reactive resistance of 300 ohms

find the impedance of the circuit

z² = real² + reactive²
z = √real² + reactive²
z = √400²Ω + 300²Ω
z = √16000 + 9000
z = √25000
z = 500Ω

Answer 4

When trying to find a right angle, as when laying out the foundation for a house.
you know the base is 4 feet, the height is 3 feet, then you adjust the angle until the H=5 feet.

Answer 5

My eighty foot yacht has a thirty foot mast in its center. How long is the guy wire strtching from the top of the mast to the bow of the boat? √[(40)² + (30)²] = 50 ft

Answer 6

a guide wire on a power pole..........the pole is 20 feet tall..........the wire is stake 15 feet from the base of the pole........how long does the guide wire need to be? 20^2 + 15 ^2 = 400 ft + 225 ft =625 ft.............the square root of 625 is 25 feet.......the guide wire needs to be 25 feet long..........a^2+ b^2 = c^2...........a right sided triangle

Answer 7

What about walking somewhere?

You can take the main roads (the legs of the right triangle), but you can also cut across (the hypotenuse) to get to your location in less time.