Angels and math

Question

Modeling—Complementary Angles The difference between the measures of two complementary angles is 22°. Determine the measures of the two angles.

Practice the Skills

In Exercises 7–14, determine (a) the volume and (b) the surface area of the three-dimensional figure. When appropriate, use the  key on your calculator and round your answer to the nearest hundredth.

Answer 1

Sorry. Not using the button-on-my-calculator symbol. We'll leave that for the student.

You have two angles, which I will call A and B. Since they are complementary, their sum is 90. Their difference is given as 22.

A + B = 90

A - B = 22

We have two equations in two unknowns. If I add the equations together I get 2A = 112, so A = 56 degrees.

You can solve for B with either of the two equations above. B = 34 degrees.

Since the answers are integers, no rounding is needed.

Pro Tip: never assume every detail given in a problem is needed. If you don't need some of the details to solve the problem, such as the statement about rounding given here, that's not your fault. Keep your eyes on the goal. :-)