question for math

Question

A spotlight is mounted on a wall 7.1 feet above a security desk in an office building. It is used to light an entrance door 11.9 feet from the desk. What is the angle of depression from the spotlight to the entrance door?

Round to the nearest tenth.

A spotlight is mounted on a wall 7.1 feet above a security desk in an office building. It is used to light an entrance door 11.9 feet from the desk. What is the angle of depression from the spotlight to the entrance door?

Round to the nearest tenth.

Answer 1

Hello, thank you for taking the time to post your question!

To solve this one you want to use the information given to set up a trig relationship between the variables. The function on this one is tangent since you’re dealing with sides that are opposite over adjacent.

So the equation here is

tan(theta) = opposite / adjacent

tan(theta) = 7.1 / 11.9

theta = arctan(7.1/11.9)

theta = 30.8256

to the nearest tenth of a degree that would mean that theta = 30.8 degrees

I hope that helps get you moving in the right direction! Feel free to reach out if you have any additional questions beyond that :)

Answer 2