Question

two cars leave an intersection. one car travels north; the other east. when the car traveling north had gone 15 miles, the distance between the cars was 5 mile more than the distance traveled by the car heading east.how far had the east bound car traveled?

Answer 1

A rt. triangle is formed:

X miles = hor side.
15 miles = ver. side.
x+5 = hyp.

x^2 + 15^2 = (x+5)^2.
x^2 + 225 = x^2 + 10x + 25.
x^2 - x^2 + 10x = 225 - 25 = 200.
10x = 200.

X = 200 / 10 = 20 miles.