Question

Roads connecting the towns of Oceanside, River City, and Lake View form a triangle. The distance from Oceanside to River City is 38 kilometers. The distance from River City to Lake View is 26 kilometers. What is the smallest possible whole number of kilometers between Lake View and Oceanside?

Answer 1

13 km

Explanation:

By Triangle Inequality Theorem: The sum of two smallest sides is greater than the third side.

Small Values of X:

X + 26 > 38

X > 38 - 26

X > 12

If we know that 38 km is the longest side, then the sum of other two sides must be greater than 38 km. Therefore the minimum value of X is 13 km.