A car travels 3km due south and then 4km due west. what is it's displacement from it's starting point?
recall the common 3-4-5 right triangle.
ANSWER
To find the displacement of the car from its starting point, you can use the Pythagorean theorem. The Pythagorean theorem states that in a right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.
In this case, the car has traveled 3km due south and 4km due west, forming a right triangle. The 3km due south can be considered the vertical side of the triangle, while the 4km due west can be considered the horizontal side of the triangle.
So, using the Pythagorean theorem, the displacement can be calculated as follows:
displacement = √(3^2 + 4^2)
= √(9 + 16)
= √25
= 5 km
Therefore, the displacement of the car from its starting point is 5 km.