Question

shelly drives north from point a, and after traveling for 25 kilometers (k), finds that she has driven in the wrong direction. she then turns to her right and travels for 2 km, and then, she turns right again and drives straight, for another 25 km. how much minimum distance does shelly have to cover to return to her starting point?

Answer 1

To return to her starting point, Shelly needs to cover the minimum distance of 2 km westward, which is the remaining side of the rectangular path she took.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the minimum distance Shelly has to cover to return to her starting point, we first need to analyze her movements.

Shelly first drives 25 km north, then makes a right turn to travel 2 km in an easterly direction, and another right turn to head south for 25 km.

This series of moves forms a rectangle on the plane, with the starting point and the end point being on the same east-west line, separated by a distance of 2 km.

To get back to the starting point, Shelly simply needs to travel the missing side of the rectangle, which is the westward 2 km. Therefore, the minimum distance she must cover is 2 km.