Question

A man walks 5 km toward the south and then turns to his right. After walking 3 km, he turns to his left and walks another 5 km. In which direction is he now relative to his starting position?

• A. West
• B. South
• C. North-East
• D. South-West

Hint:

Draw a quick rough sketch with small arrows. Visualizing the path directly on paper prevents confusion between left/right turns, especially when facing South.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Question:
This is a direction sense problem. We need to trace the path taken by the man and determine the direction of his final position with respect to his starting point.


Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
Use a standard Cartesian coordinate system or a compass map (North = Up, South = Down, East = Right, West = Left) to plot the movements sequentially.


Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Let the man's starting position be the origin \(O (0, 0)\).
1. He walks 5 km toward the south.
He reaches point \(A\). Since he moved downwards, he is now facing South.
Coordinates of \(A = (0, -5)\).
2. He turns to his right.
Facing South, a right turn means he turns towards the West.
He walks 3 km West to reach point \(B\).
Coordinates of \(B = (-3, -5)\).
3. He turns to his left.
Facing West, a left turn means he turns towards the South.
He walks another 5 km South to reach his final point \(C\).
Coordinates of \(C = (-3, -5 - 5) = (-3, -10)\).
Now, we look at the final coordinates \((-3, -10)\) relative to the origin \((0, 0)\).
The x-coordinate is negative (indicating West), and the y-coordinate is negative (indicating South).
Therefore, the final position is in the South-West direction relative to the starting point.


Step 4: Final Answer:
The correct choice is (D).