Two vans leave a parking lot at the exact same time. A few minutes later, car 1 is 8 miles due east of the parking lot and car 2 is 15 miles due south of the lot. How far a part are the two cars in miles?
Pythagorean Theorem
8^2 + 15^2 = d^2
64 + 225 = d^2
289 = d^2
17 = d
To find the distance between the two cars, we can use the Pythagorean theorem. According to the theorem, in a right triangle, the square of the length of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.
In this case, the two cars form a right triangle, with car 1 being 8 miles due east and car 2 being 15 miles due south. The distance between them is the hypotenuse of the right triangle.
Using the Pythagorean theorem, we can calculate the distance between the two cars:
Distance^2 = (8 miles)^2 + (15 miles)^2
Distance^2 = 64 miles^2 + 225 miles^2
Distance^2 = 289 miles^2
Taking the square root of both sides, we find:
Distance = √289 miles
So, the distance between the two cars is approximately 17 miles.