How do I write the formula for a trapezoid? Using b1 and b2 for the lengths of the base, and using h for the height
The question says "Write the formula for the area A of a trapezoid. Use b1 and b2 for the lengths of the bases, and use h for the height. I used #A= (b1+b2)/2h# but it wasn't right. Is there a variant of the formula that I'm missing? Thanks!
The question says "Write the formula for the area A of a trapezoid. Use b1 and b2 for the lengths of the bases, and use h for the height. I used
1 Answer
There are several ways, but the easiest to interpret are
Explanation:
Mathematically, your answer of
There are better ways to express the formula, though. Much like how a sentence can be written in multiple ways to convey the same meaning, a formula can sometimes be written multiple ways and still produce the same result.
If given the opportunity to tweak the form as it is written here, I would make it visually clear that the
#A=(b_1+b_2)/2 xx h#
This removes any doubt about the operation to be performed on
You could also write the formula with the
#A=1/2(b_1+b_2)h#
This form necessitates the parentheses around
There are many other ways to write the formula, including