Question

Henry runs up 10 flights of stairs. Then he runs down 10 flights of stairs. Does this situation represent additive inverses? Explain(I think it does because 10+ -10 is 0)

Answer 1

Henry first runs up 10 flights of stairs, this is represented by:

+10

The plus sign is because he is going up, and the number 10 is the number of flights of stairs.

Then, Henry runs down 10 flights of stairs, this is represented by

-10

The minus sign is because he is going down, and 10 is the number of flights of stairs.

Since the additive inverse of +10 is -10, and when you add them you get 0, this situation represents additive inverses.

Answer: Yes, the situation represents additive inverses