How far is the base of a 16-foot ladder from the building if it reaches a point 15 feet above ground?

To determine how far the base of the 16-foot ladder is from the building when it reaches a point 15 feet above the ground, we can apply the Pythagorean theorem. This is important because the ladder, the wall, and the ground form a right triangle.

In this scenario:

• The length of the ladder acts as the hypotenuse of the triangle, measuring 16 feet.

• The height that the ladder reaches on the building corresponds to one leg of the triangle, which is 15 feet.

• The distance from the base of the ladder to the wall is the other leg of the triangle, which we need to find.

According to the Pythagorean theorem, the relationship is described as follows:

(a^2 + b^2 = c^2)

Here:

• "c" is the length of the ladder (hypotenuse), which is 16 feet.

• "a" is the height reached on the building, which is 15 feet.

• "b" represents the distance from the base of the ladder to the building.

We can rearrange the formula to solve for "b":

1. Substitute the known values into the equation:

(15^2 + b^