Can a 3 1/2 foot by 12 foot couch be placed against one of the long walls of the room without touching the carpet? can a 3 1/2 foot by 12 foot couch be placed against one of the short walls of the room without touching the carpet?

1. No

2.Yes

Step-by-step explanation:

The Smiths want to buy a 9 ft. by 12 ft. carpet and center it in a 15 ft. by 20 ft. room. If the smiths have the carpet centered in the room, this means that in the long side of the room there will be 4 ft separating the carpet from the wall which would be the short wall, if the couch is only 3.5 ft it wont touch the carpet, while on the other hand the short side of the carpet there will be only 3 ft separating the carpet from the long wall, so if you´d put a couch against that wall it would touch the wall.

irrational, cannot