QUESTION 8 The sides of a triangle are 3, 7, and 9 . Find the length of the shortest side of a similar triangle with a longest side of 36 . 28 12 6

To solve this problem, we look for the ratio of the sides of the original triangle (with sides 3, 7, and 9) and the similar triangle with the longest side of 36. The longest side in the original triangle is 9, and we set up a ratio: Longest side of similar triangle : Longest side of original triangle = 36 : 9 = 4 : 1. Now, we apply that ratio to the shortest side (which is 3) of the original triangle: Shortest side of similar triangle = 3 * 4 = 12. So, the shortest side of the similar triangle is 12. If you ever get confused with scaling triangles, remember the key: maintain the ratios! It’s like being a chef—adjust the ingredients while keeping the flavor profile consistent!