Problem No.

13

What is the area of triangle with sides of 5, 7, and 10?

A. 16.248 B. 25.248 C. 18.248 D. 30.248

Given:

Side a = 5

Side b = 7

Side c = 10

Required:

Area of triangle

Schematic Diagram:

Solution:

Use heron’s formula to find the area of a triangle with sides a, b, and c,

A = √ s ( s−a )( s−b ) ( s−c)

Find the semi-perimeter s of the triangle

a+b+ c 5+7+10
S= = = 11
2 2

Substituting the values of S, a, b, and c to heron’s formula yields,

A = √ s ( s−a )( s−b ) ( s−c) = √ 11 ( 11−5 )( 11−7 ) (11−10)

 A = 16.24807681

ANSWER: A

Discussion:

The area of a triangle with given three sides can be determined using heron’s formula (A =

√ s ( s−a )( s−b ) ( s−c)) where s = semi-perimeter and a, b, and c are the length of each side of the
triangle.