With the Pythagoras Theorem we can find that the distance traveled is:
39 m
The distance is the length of the path between two points and it is a scalar magnitude so if the path changes direction the Pythagorean theorem should be used
d =
Where d is the distance, (x,y,z) is the interes point, (x₀,y₀,z₀) is de reference point.
In this case, let's set a reference system in the lower part of the school, take the z-axis as vertical and set the point of arrival at as the reference (0, 0, 0).
The distance that the students descend is d₁ = 30 k ^ m, when they arrive from the bottom of the school they travel d₂ = 15 j ^ m and d₃ = 20 i ^ m
let's calculate
d =
d = 39.05 m
Notice that the distance by being a scalar does not have unit vectors
In conclusion using the Pythagoras Theorem we can find that the distance traveled is 39 m
Learn more about distance here: