Question

Zeek then want to ride his bike to the old spaghetti factory. He wondering if he should bike 1 mile north, then 0.5 miles directly east, or if he should just go directly there to bike the shortest distance.

Answer 1

He should travel directly

Explanation:

Given

`x = 0.5` --- East

`y =1` --- North

If he goes through east north direction, the distance (d) traveled is:

`d = x + y`

`d = 0.5 + 1`

`d = 1.5 mile`

If he travels directly, the distance (d) is:

`d = √(x^2 + y^2)` ---- Pythagoras theorem

`d = √(0.5^2 + 1^2)`

`d = √(0.25 + 1)`

`d = √(1.25)`

`d = 1.12mile`

By comparison, he will travel the shortest distance if he travels directly because
`1.12 < 1.5`

Hence, he should travel directly