MathXplosion

How Tall is a Tree?

How can you find the height of something tall, like a tree or a basketball net, without using a ladder? All you need is to follow the rule of thumb. It's not magic... it's math! The Educational Gist: When we can't directly measure a distance using a ruler or some other measurement device, indirect measurement, proportions and estimation can be used to compute linear measures with surprising accuracy.