Question

10. To get from point A to point B you must avoid walking through a pond. To

avoid the pond, you must walk 34 meters south and 41 meters east. To the
nearest meter, how many meters would be saved if it were possible to walk
through the pond?


Show work

Answer 1

22 meters.

Explanation:

There is a pond between two points A and B.

To avoid the pond, one must walk to the south from point A to point C (say) by 34 meters and then to the east from point C to point B by 41 meters.

Now, it is clear that Δ ABC is a right triangle with AB as the hypotenuse that is the minimum distance from A to B through the pond.

The two legs of the right triangle are AC and CB.

Applying Pythagoras Theorem, AB² = AC² + CB² = 34² + 41² = 2837

⇒ AB = 53 meters (Rounded to the nearest meter)

Therefore, (34 + 41) - 53 = 22 meters will be saved if it were possible to walk through the pond. (Answer)