20/3 (ft)/s in this diagram, x is the distance from the man to the pole, and y is the distance from the tip of the man's shadow to the pole. i assume the man and pole are standing straight up, which means the 2 triangles are similar. by similarity, (y-x)/y=6/15 15(y-x)=6y 15y-15x=6y 9y=15x y=5/3x differentiate both sides with respect to t or time. dy/dt=5/3dx/dt you know dx/dt=4(ft)/s because ... More @Wikipedia
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