Question

Eduardo and Lisa both leave school on their bikes at the same time. Eduardo rides due east at 18 miles per hour for 30 minutes and Lisa rides due south at 16 miles per hour for 30 minutes. On a separate sheet of paper, draw and label the diagram to represent the problem. To the nearest hundredth of a mile, how far apart are they when they stop riding their bikes?

Answer 1

To solve this problem, we can use the Pythagorean theorem to find the distance between Eduardo and Lisa after they have been riding their bikes for 30 minutes.

Let's say Eduardo starts at point A and rides due east for 9 miles (which is 18 miles per hour for 30 minutes). Lisa starts at point A and rides due south for 8 miles (which is 16 miles per hour for 30 minutes). After 30 minutes, Eduardo is at point B and Lisa is at point C

Now, we can use the Pythagorean theorem to find the distance between points B and C:

distance = sqrt((BC)^2 + (AB)^2)

where AB = 9 miles (distance that Eduardo rode) and BC = 8 miles (distance that Lisa rode).

Substituting the values, we get:

distance = sqrt((8)^2 + (9)^2)

distance = sqrt(64 + 81)

distance = sqrt(145)

distance ≈ 12.04 miles (rounded to the nearest hundredth)

Therefore, Eduardo and Lisa are approximately 12.04 miles apart when they stop riding their bikes.