# Difference between revisions of "2010 AMC 10B Problems/Problem 7"

## Problem

A triangle has side lengths $10$, $10$, and $12$. A rectangle has width $4$ and area equal to the area of the triangle. What is the perimeter of this rectangle?

$\textbf{(A)}\ 16 \qquad \textbf{(B)}\ 24 \qquad \textbf{(C)}\ 28 \qquad \textbf{(D)}\ 32 \qquad \textbf{(E)}\ 36$

## Solution

The triangle is isosceles. The height of the triangle is therefore given by $h = \sqrt{10^2 - ( \dfrac{12}{2})^2} = \sqrt{64} = 8$

Now, the area of the triangle is $\dfrac{bh}{2} = \dfrac{12*8}{2} = \dfrac{96}{2} = 48$

We have that the area of the rectangle is the same as the area of the triangle, namely $48$. We also have the width of the rectangle: $4$.

The length of the rectangle therefore is: $l = \dfrac{48}{4} = 12$

The perimeter of the rectangle then becomes: $2l + 2w = 2*12 + 2*4 = 32$

$\boxed{\textbf{(D)}\ 32}$

An alternative way to find the area of the triangle is by using Heron's formula, $A=\sqrt{(s)(s-a)(s-b)(s-c)}$ where $s$ is the semi-perimeter of the triangle (meaning half the perimeter). Here, the semi-perimeter is $(10+10+12)/2 = 16$. Thus the area equals $\sqrt{(16)(16-10)(16-10)(16-12)} = \sqrt{16*6*6*4} = 48.$

 2010 AMC 10B (Problems • Answer Key • Resources) Preceded byProblem 6 Followed byProblem 8 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 All AMC 10 Problems and Solutions