A hamster in a ball begins its journey 5 feet to the left of a refrigerator, travels 20 feet to the right of the refrigerator, and ends its journey directly in front of the refrigerator.

Question

If negative values are assigned to positions to the left of its starting position and positive values are assigned to positions to the right of its starting position, what is the displacement of the hamster?

(1 point)
Responses

5 feet
5 feet

20 feet
20 feet

0 feet
0 feet

-5 feet
-5 feet

Answer 1

To determine the displacement of the hamster, we first need to understand its journey relative to the refrigerator.

1. The hamster starts 5 feet to the left of the refrigerator. We can represent this position as -5 feet (since left is negative).
2. It then travels 20 feet to the right. Moving 20 feet to the right from -5 feet brings it to the position: \(-5 + 20 = 15\) feet (which is to the right of the refrigerator).
3. The problem states that the hamster ends its journey "directly in front of the refrigerator." This means the final position is 0 feet (directly in front of the refrigerator).

Displacement is calculated as the final position minus the initial position:

\[ \text{Displacement} = \text{Final Position} - \text{Initial Position} = 0 - (-5) = 0 + 5 = 5 \text{ feet} \]

Therefore, the displacement of the hamster is 5 feet.