I am given 2 side lengths for one triangle and two side lengths for the parallelogram. I am asked to

Bailee Short

Bailee Short

Answered question

2022-06-21

I am given 2 side lengths for one triangle and two side lengths for the parallelogram. I am asked to find the length of m (FE) and n (DE)
given the lenghts:
h (AC) = 9
k (AF) = 15
f (AB) = 16
I don't see how to use Law of Sines because I don't have any angles and I don't see how to use Law of Cosines to solve triangle ACF because I am missing a side length.

Answer & Explanation

zalitiaf

zalitiaf

Beginner2022-06-22Added 27 answers

Let's let
A = ( 0 , 0 )
B = ( 16 , 0 )
C = ( 9 cos θ , 9 sin θ )  for some  0 < θ < 90
D = B + C = ( 16 + 9 cos θ , 9 sin θ )
F = ( 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ , 9 sin θ )
Then we have a parallelogram A B D C with a point F on C D, such that | A C | = 9, | A F | = 15, and | A B | = 16. Our next step is to find E. We'll be done if we can show that | A E | is a non-constant function of θ.
E is the intersection of the lines determined by segments A F and B D. To find the coordinates of E, we'll first find the equations of these lines. Using the point-slope form, we have that the equation for the line determined by segment A F is:
y = 9 sin θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ x
Using the point-slope form, we have that the equation for the line determined by segment B D is:
y = 9 sin θ 9 cos θ ( x 16 )
Hence we can find the x-coordinate of E by solving
9 sin θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ x = 9 sin θ 9 cos θ ( x 16 )
This gives us that
x = 16 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 9 cos θ
We can then plug this into the equation for the line determined by segment A F to obtain that
y = 16 9 sin θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 9 cos θ
Hence E = ( 16 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 9 cos θ , 16 9 sin θ 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 9 cos θ )
It follows that
| A E | = 16 15 15 2 9 2 sin 2 θ 9 cos θ
Note that if θ = 30 , then | A E | 36.8, but if θ = 60 , then | A E | 28.9. So | A E | is a non-constant function of θ.
Finally, note that m = | A E | 15. So m is a non-constant function of θ. We need more information.

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