Question

2. A child observes a caterpillar walking on a window sill. The caterpillar walks 18 cm to the left, then 6 cm to

the right, then 10 cm to the left.
b. What is the displacement of the caterpillar?

Answer 1

D = 8 cm

Step-by-step explanation:

It is given that, the caterpillar walks 18 cm to the left, then 6 cm to the right, then 10 cm to the left.

We need to find the displacement of the caterpillar. The attached figure shows the path traveled by the caterpillar. A is the initial position, then it reaches B and finally it reaches C.

Let right side is positive and left is negative. We know that,

Displacement = final position - initial position

= C - A

= -10-(-18)

= 8 cm

Hence, the displacement of the caterpillar is 8 cm.