Question

A man goes 10 m due east and then 24 m due north. Find the distance from the starting point

Answer 1

Let the initial position of the man be O and his final position be B. Since the man goes 10 m due east and then 24 m due north.

Therefore, ∆AOB is a right triangle right-angled at A such that OA = 10 m and AB = 24 m.

By Phythagoras theorem, we have

`OB^2 = OA^2 + AB^2`

`⇒ OB^2 = 10^2 + 24^2 = 100 + 576 = 676`

`⇒ OB = \sqrt { 676 } = 26 m`

Hence, the man is at a distance of 26 m from the starting point