Answer: The length of the shorter side of a golden rectangle is about 24.7 inches.
Step-by-step explanation:
Given : A golden rectangle has side lengths in the ratio of about 1 to 1.62.
Since 1.62 > 1 , so
[tex]\dfrac{\text{Length of shorter side}}{\text{Length of longer side}}=\dfrac{1}{1.62}[/tex]
If the length of the longer side is 40 inches , then we have
[tex]\dfrac{\text{Length of shorter side}}{\text{40 inches}}=\dfrac{1}{1.62}\\\\ \Rightarrow\ \text{Length of shorter side}=\dfrac{1}{1.62}\times \text{40 inches}\\\\ \Rightarrow\ \text{Length of shorter side}=24.6913580247\approx24.7\text{ inches}[/tex]
Hence, the length of the shorter side of a golden rectangle is about 24.7 inches.