Problem:
Triangle has vertices , and , where is on the line . What is the area of ?
Answer Choices:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Solution:
Because the line is parallel to , the area of is independent of the location of on the line. Therefore it may be assumed that . In that case the triangle has base and altitude 3 , so its area is .
\section*{OR}
The base of the triangle is . Its altitude is the distance between the point and the parallel line , which is
Therefore its area is .
The problems on this page are the property of the MAA's American Mathematics Competitions