silemus.

15Law of cosines, finding a side

In triangle ABC, b = 7, c = 10 and A = 50°. Find a. Give the answer to 3 decimal places.

Side a ≈ 7.681. Since A = 50° sits between sides b = 7 and c = 10, use the law of cosines: a² = 7² + 10² − 2(7)(10)cos(50°) ≈ 59.0, so a ≈ √59.0 ≈ 7.681.

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