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Eight Ratios

Age 14 to 16
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Quadrilateral

Two perpendicular lines lie across each other and the end points are joined to form a quadrilateral.

Eight ratios are defined, three are given but five need to be found.

Each original line is now in two parts and there are a further four lengths forming the quadrilateral.

The ratios work like this, 0.43 is the ratio between the upper portion of the vertical line and the hypotenuse of that orange triangle. Similarly 0.88 is the ratio between the right-hand portion of the horizontal line and the hypotenuse of that green triangle.

Can you find the five ratios which were not given?

This problem is about ratio, you could have a big version or a small version of the diagram and it would make no difference, so why not make the size something convenient ? Why not try having the hypotenuse of the top right orange triangle as your unit - ie. make that length 1 . What will you do next ?

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The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice.

NRICH is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.

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