In sunlight, a vertical yardstick casts a 1 ft shadow at the same time that a nearby tree casts a 15 ft shadow. How tall is the tree? (Make a sketch to help solve the problem. Hint: 3ft equals one yard.) A) 45 ft
B) 50 ft
C) 44 ft
D) 48 ft

A) 45 ft

Step-by-step

The yardstick is 3ft tall since 1 yard = 3ft. It is 3 times as tall as its shadow. The tree has a 15ft long shadow. The tree should also be 3 times as tall as its shadow. The tree is 15*3ft tall, so it is 45ft tall. I attached an image of the diagram I made.