Problem:
A ladder is leaning against a vertical wall makes an angle of 20⁰ with the ground. the foot of the ladder is 3 m from the wall. Find the height of the ladder.
Solution:
The situation of the problem can be diagrammed in the following right triangle:
where AC = 3m and BC = L.
Now, we want to find L. Thus, applying the appropriate trigonometric identity we have:
[tex]cos(20^{\circ}\text{)}=\frac{3m}{L}[/tex]solving for L, we have:
[tex]L\text{ = }\frac{3}{\cos (20)}=\text{ 3.19}[/tex]thus, the correct answer is 3.19
