Question

Two trees have perfectly straight trunks and are both growing perpendicular to the flat horizontal ground beneath them. The sides of the trunks that face each other are separated by 1.1 m. A frisky squirrel makes three jumps in rapid succession. First, he leaps from the foot of one tree to a spot that is 0.9 m above the ground on the other tree. Then, he jumps back to the first tree, landing on it at a spot that is 1.7 m above the ground. Finally, he leaps to the other tree, now landing at a spot that is 2.3 m above the ground. What is the magnitude of the squirrel's displacement?

Answer 1

2.55 m.

Step-by-step explanation:

Displacement is the shortest distance between initial and final position . In the present case this distance forms the hypotenuse of the triangle having base equal to 1.1 m and perpendicular equal to 2.3 m .

Hypotenuse H then

H² = 1.1² + 2.3²

H = 2.55 m.