Final answer:
The phrase "20 mi, northwest" describes both the distance and direction of motion, consistent with the concept of displacement which has magnitude and direction.
Step-by-step explanation:
The phrase "20 mi, northwest" likely describes the distance and direction of a motion, considering it specifies both a magnitude (20 miles) and a direction (northwest). This is consistent with the definition of displacement in physics, which is a vector quantity that indicates the change in position of an object. It has both magnitude and direction. When comparing displacements, regardless of the path taken, it is the straight-line distance from the start point to the endpoint in a specific direction that matters.
For example, if a person walks 20 miles to the northwest, their displacement would be 20 miles in that direction, even if the path they took to get there was not a straight line.
Therefore, regarding the true or false statement, both people would have the same displacement because the final position relative to the starting position is the same whether the person moves east then north, or north then east.