sandra walked 9 blocks due east then 12 blocks due south . what is the shortest distance from where she started to where she finished
Use the Pythagorean theorem and find the diagonal of this rectangle.
a^2 + b^2 = c^2
9^2 + 12^2 = c^2
81 + 144 = c^2
225 = c^2
15 = c
To find the shortest distance from where Sandra started to where she finished, we can use the Pythagorean theorem. The Pythagorean theorem states that in a right-angled triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse (the side opposite the right angle) is equal to the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides.
In this scenario, the path Sandra followed forms a right-angled triangle, with the eastward path representing one side of the triangle, the southward path representing another side of the triangle, and the shortest distance from the starting point to the endpoint representing the hypotenuse.
To find the length of the hypotenuse, we can use the formula:
hypotenuse = √(side1^2 + side2^2)
In this case, the eastward path is 9 blocks and the southward path is 12 blocks. Plugging these values into the formula, we get:
hypotenuse = √(9^2 + 12^2)
= √(81 + 144)
= √(225)
= 15
Therefore, the shortest distance from where Sandra started to where she finished is 15 blocks.