A person walks 500 m North-East, then 1 km South, turns right to walk another 1 km. Then he walks 500 m South-West and in the end, walks 1 km towards North. Where will he be at the end with respect to the starting position?
- A1 km South-West
- B1 km West
- C500 m East
- D500 m North
Solution & Step-by-step Explanation
Let's track the vectors or geometric properties of each movement phase step-by-step:
1. Move 1: North-East.
2. Move 2: () South.
3. Move 3: Turn right (since he was traveling South, turning right means moving due West) and walk ().
4. Move 4: South-West.
5. Move 5: () North.
Geometric cancellation analysis:
* Notice that Move 1 ( North-East) and Move 4 ( South-West) are exactly equal in distance and precisely opposite in direction. Therefore, these two segments form parallel matching legs that perfectly cancel each other's net displacement out.
* Now, we evaluate the remaining primary cardinal moves: Move 2 ( South) and Move 5 ( North) are also equal in magnitude and directly opposite, meaning they completely cancel each other out vertically.
The only uncancelled displacement component left is Move 3, which takes him * West**.
Thus, the person will end up exactly West of his starting location.
1. Move 1: North-East.
2. Move 2: () South.
3. Move 3: Turn right (since he was traveling South, turning right means moving due West) and walk ().
4. Move 4: South-West.
5. Move 5: () North.
Geometric cancellation analysis:
* Notice that Move 1 ( North-East) and Move 4 ( South-West) are exactly equal in distance and precisely opposite in direction. Therefore, these two segments form parallel matching legs that perfectly cancel each other's net displacement out.
* Now, we evaluate the remaining primary cardinal moves: Move 2 ( South) and Move 5 ( North) are also equal in magnitude and directly opposite, meaning they completely cancel each other out vertically.
The only uncancelled displacement component left is Move 3, which takes him * West**.
Thus, the person will end up exactly West of his starting location.