Quadratic word problem help

ptebwwong

New member
Joined
Sep 28, 2008
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15
I need help with this problem.

The hypotenuse of a right triangle is 17ft long. One Leg is 3.4ft longer than the other leg. Find the length of the legs.

I know c=17ft^2. But I don't know how to write a or b for the problem.
 
If I said Joe is 2 years older than Tom, then I could represent their ages as...

Let Tom's age be x years.
Then Joe's age is x + 2 years.

If I said banana bunch A weighs 5 pounds less than banana bunch B, then I could represent their weights as...

Let bunch B weigh y pounds.
Then bunch A weighs y-5 pounds.
 
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