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5 votes
Please help me out! :)

Please help me out! :)-example-1
User Marilyn
by
5.0k points

2 Answers

3 votes

To find the length of a segment you can use the pythagorean theorem: given two points
A=(x_A,y_B),\ B=(x_B,y_B) you have


\overline{AB} = √((x_A-x_B)^2+(y_A-y_B)^2)

In your case, we have


\overline{RS} = √((x_R-x_S)^2+(y_R-y_S)^2) = √((0-b)^2+(a-c)^2) = √(b^2+(a-c)^2)

Note that your exercise seems to suggest the opposite, i.e.


\overline{RS} = √(b^2+(c-a)^2)

Don't worry: the two numbers are the same. In fact,
a-c and
c-a are opposite, and opposite numbers are the same when squared (for example,
3^2=(-3)^2=9)

It had to be so after all: we're simply claiming that the distance between R and S or between S and R is the same..how could it be any different?

User Maxbachmann
by
6.3k points
6 votes

answer is;

b

explanation

magnitude of two points is given by;

√{(x2-x1)^2+(y1-y2)^2}

for RS we have,

√{(b-0)^2+(c-a)^2}

=√{(b)^2+(c-a)^2}

User Ferrakkem Bhuiyan
by
4.9k points