"Published in Newark, California, USA"
A kite is in the form of an equilateral triangle of edge 3 ft. During one part of its flight, its center moves on a straight line while the kite remains parallel to its first position. If the distance between the planes of the first and last positions of the kite is 100 ft., find the volume swept out by the kite during this part of its flight.
Solution:
To illustrate the problem, it is better to draw the figure as follows
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| Photo by Math Principles in Everyday Life |
Consider the base of a triangular prism which is the kite as follows
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| Photo by Math Principles in Everyday Life |
The area of the base which is the kite is
Therefore, the volume of a triangular prism which is the volume swept out by the kite during its flight is
or
