To calculate Claire's resultant displacement, one would normally use vector addition by drawing displacement vectors head to tail and then measuring the resulting vector. However, without specific directional information, only the total distance traveled can be known, not the resultant displacement.
The magnitude of Claire's resultant displacement given her movements in the aisle is calculated using vector addition. Since displacement is a vector quantity which includes both magnitude and direction, we would need to know the specific movements Claire made to accurately calculate her resultant displacement using the graphical technique of vector addition.
To find the total displacement, we place the individual displacement vectors head to tail. After the vectors are aligned, the resultant vector (R) is drawn from the start of the first vector to the end of the last vector. The magnitude and direction of this resultant vector represent Claire's total displacement.
The process involves using a ruler to measure the length of vector R which gives the magnitude, and a protractor to determine the direction relative to a reference direction (usually north, east, south, or west). In scenarios provided for movements where only the magnitude of total distance traveled is given without directional components, as in the reference above (XTotal = 3.75 km), we cannot determine the resultant displacement without further directional information.