Answer:
The shortest distance from her house to the bookstore is 14.4 miles
Step-by-step explanation:
On her way to the bookstore from her house, Mary travels 8 miles north and 12 miles west.
The shortest distance from her house to the bookstore is by following a straight line that happens to be the hypotenuse of a right triangle whose legs are the perpendicular distances traveled.
We apply Pythagora's Theorem to find the hypotenuse c:
[tex]c^2=a^2+b^2[/tex]
[tex]c^2=8^2+12^2[/tex]
[tex]c^2=64+144=208[/tex]
[tex]c=\sqrt{208}=14.4[/tex]
The shortest distance from her house to the bookstore is 14.4 miles
