Answer
$b = 2\sqrt11$ feet
Work Step by Step
Plugging in given values into the Pythagorean Theorem gives:
$10^2 + b^2 = 12^2$
Simplify by subtracting $10^2$ from both sides:
$b^2 = 12^2 - 10^2=144-100=44$
To simplify $b^2 = 44$, take the square root of both sides:
$\sqrt b^2 = \sqrt 44 = \sqrt 4\times 11$
Simplifying gives us the answer: $b = 2\sqrt11$ feet
