Building a is 190 feet shorter than building b. the total height of the two buildings is 1480 feet. find the height of each building.

We will solve this using a system of equations.  The first part tells us that building a is 190 feet shorter than building b.  Our first equation, then, is b=190+a.  The second part tells us that the addition of the two buildings' heights is 1480.  So our second equation is a + b = 1480.  The first equation is already solved for b, so let's sub that value into the second equation for b: a+(190+a)=1480.  2a + 190 = 1480 and 2a = 1290.  That means that building a is 645 feet tall.  Building b is 190 feet taller, so b = 190 + 645, which is 835.