For a crane to lift the beam shown to the right, the beam and the two support cables must form an isosceles triangle with height h. if the distance between the cables along the beam is 18 ft and the height h is 8 ft, what is the total length of the two cables?

The total length of the two cables is

Step-by-step explanation:

see the attached figure to better understand the problem

we know that

In the right triangle ABD

Applying the Pythagoras Theorem

substitute the given values

Remember that

AB=AC  ----> because ABC is an isosceles triangle

so

The total length of the two cables is equal to

step-by-step explanation:

x^2 -12x + 36 + y^2 = 36

x^2 + y^2 = 12x

r^2 = 12rcos(theta)

r = 12 cos(theta)

answer: 48

just remember to use pemdas:

parentheses

expressions

multiplication

division

addition

subtraction