© 1999 T
EXAS
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NSTRUMENTS
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NCORPORATED
TI
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34
Û
: A Guide for Teachers
13
Trig Functions
Name ___________________________
Date
___________________________
Problem
You need to build a ramp to your front door. The distance from the ground to the
bottom of the door is 1.5 feet. You don’t want the angle of incline to be more than
6 degrees. The distance from the street to the door is 20 feet. Is there enough
room to build the ramp?
Procedure
1. Make a drawing of the problem.
2. Use the trig ratio
tan = opposite leg
¾
adjacent leg
to find angle
A
. (Round
your answer to the nearest tenth.)
3. Is there room to build the ramp?
Extension
You want to start the ramp 15 feet away from the door. Can you do that and still
have the angle of incline be less than 6 degrees?