Question

Suppose that John lives on a square block that is 200 meters per side, and in the evenings, he walks with his dog around the block for a little exercise.

If John walks once around the block back to his house, what is his final displacement?

Answer 1

John's final displacement is 0 meters as his starting and ending points are the same.

Step-by-step explanation:

The final displacement of John can be determined by looking at the path he walks around the block. Since the block has 4 sides of 200 meters each, John walks a total distance of 4 x 200 = 800 meters. However, the final displacement is calculated by finding the straight line distance from the starting point to the ending point, disregarding the path taken. In this case, the starting and ending points are the same, so the displacement is 0 meters. John's final displacement is 0 meters.