Question

Andrew kicks a ball along a straight path. The ball rolls straight forward for 13.2 meters. Then Andrew kicks the ball straight back. The ball rolls back along the same path for 9.5 meters. What distance did the ball travel?
3.7 meters
0 meters
22.7 meters
125 meters

Answer 1

Answer:

22.7 meters

Explanation:

Let's remind the difference between distance and displacement:

- distance: the total distance travelled by an object in all its paths

- displacement: the different between the final and initial position of the object

In this case, the problem asks to find the distance covered by the ball. This will be the sum of the distances covered by the ball in each part of its motion, therefore:

$d=13.2 m+9.5 m=22.7 m$

(instead, the displacement will be the difference between the final and initial position of the ball, therefore:

$d=13.2 m-9.5 m=3.7 m$)