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40 votes
40 votes
What is the length of a
segment with endpoints at
(-3, 4) and (4, 4)?

User Speller
by
2.9k points

1 Answer

26 votes
26 votes

Answer:

7

Explanation:

since both points have the same y coordinate, they are on the same horizontal line (y = 4).

the distance between these 2 points is therefore simply their difference in the x coordinate :

4 - -3 = 4 + 3 = 7

when you calculate the distance between 2 points, you subtract one from the other to get really only the difference between them. and a distance is always positive, so, we need to use the absolute value of the result.

if both coordinates are different between both points, it gets a little bit more complex.

then the distance as Hypotenuse and the x and y coordinate differences as legs create a right-angled triangle, and Pythagoras applies as distance formula :

distance² = (x difference)² + (y difference)²

to show you this based on this example :

in our case that is

distance² = (4 - -3)² + (4 - 4)² = (4+3)² + 0 =

= 7²

distance = sqrt(7²) = 7

your see now, why the same y coordinate (works also if the x coordinates are the same) is allowing us to get the result so much quicker.

User Willeke
by
2.7k points