A special effects engineer is helping create a movie and needs to add a shadow to a tall totem pole that is next to a 6-foot-tall
man. The totem pole is 48 feet tall and is next to the man, who
has a shadow that is 2.5 feet long.
What is the length of the shadow that the engineer needs to
create for the totem pole?

20 feet

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the length of the totem pole's shadow, we need to know that the rate between the man's height and his shadow's length is the same rate of the totem pole's height and its shadow's length.

So, if we call the length of the totem pole's shadow 'x', we have:

6 feet / 2.5 feet = 48 feet / x feet

x = 2.5 * 48 / 6

x = 20

So the length of the totem pole's shadow is 20 feet.