In rectangle ABCD, E and F are chosen on AB and CD, respectively, so that AEFD is a square. If BEAB=BCBE, determine the value of BCAB.
Solution
Solution:
Let x be BE and y be AE. Note that AEFD is a square so AE=BC=y. Also, AB=BE+AE so AB=x+y. Since BEAB=BCBE then xx+y=yx. Thus, we have xy+y2=x2 which yields x2−xy−y2=0. Solving for x using the quadratic formula gives us x=2y±y2−4(1)(−y2)=(21±5)y. However, we will only take x=(21+5)y since the other solution will mean that x<0 which is absurd since x is a measure of length. Thus, BCAB=yx+y=y(21+5)y+y=21+5+2=23+5. Therefore, the answer is 23+5.
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Source: MathNet,
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