McGraw Hill Glencoe Algebra 2, 2012
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McGraw Hill Glencoe Algebra 2, 2012 View details
8. The Pythagorean Theorem
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Exercise 5 Page P23

5

Practice makes perfect

To find the missing side of the triangle, we will use the Pythagorean Theorem.

In the formula, a and b are the legs and c is the hypotenuse of a right triangle. We are given a triangle with b=12 and c=13. Let's substitute these values into the formula.

a^2+b^2=c^2
a^2+ 12^2= 13^2
â–¼
Solve for a
a^2+144=169
a^2=25
a=sqrt(25)
a=5

Since a negative side length does not make sense, we only need to consider positive solutions.