Question

A person walks 10 km North, turns right and walks 5 km. Then, he turns right again and walks 10 km. How far is he from the starting point and in which direction?

• A. 5 km East
• B. 10 km West
• C. 5 km West
• D. 10 km East

Hint:

Drawing a rough sketch of the directional path makes it much easier to visualize rectangles and right-angled triangles to find the shortest distance.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Question:
This question asks for the shortest distance and the final direction with respect to the starting point after a sequence of movements.


Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
Trace the path using standard map directions (North, South, East, West) and calculate the net displacement using basic geometry.


Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Let the starting point be \(O\).
1. The person walks 10 km North from \(O\) to reach point \(A\).
2. He turns right (now facing East) and walks 5 km to reach point \(B\).
3. He turns right again (now facing South) and walks 10 km to reach point \(C\).
The path forms a rectangle \(OABC\) where the opposite sides \(OA\) and \(BC\) are parallel and equal in length (10 km).
Because he walked 10 km North and then 10 km South, his vertical displacement is zero.
The final point \(C\) is directly East of the starting point \(O\).
The distance from the starting point is the length of \(OC\), which is equal to the length of \(AB = 5\) km.
Thus, he is 5 km East from the starting point.


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