WAEC Mathematics 2024 Paper

Concept:In the right-angled triangle formed by the ladder, the ground, and the pole, the required distance is the side adjacent to the given angle.Explanation:Let $d$ be the distance between the foot of the ladder and the pole.The ladder is the hypotenuse, so $15$ m is opposite the right angle.The angle with the horizontal is $72^\circ$.Using cosine: $\cos 72^\circ = \frac{d}{15}$.Therefore, $d = 15 \times \cos 72^\circ$.$\cos 72^\circ \approx 0.3090$, so $d \approx 15 \times 0.3090 = 4.635$ m.Correct to one decimal place, $d \approx 4.6$ m.Answer:D. 4.6 m