Given Vector A with magintude 9.17 feet and Vector B with magnitude of 10.58 feet, what is the resultant of the two vectors added together?

Question

Answer: I know it would depend on the direction of the vector. If in the same line we would add them or if opposite lines we would subract them, and if at right triagle we would us the pyth theorm. I don't know how to determine the direction of the vector's here. I assume that they might be in the right triangle but am not sure. In that case aˆ2 + bˆ2 = cˆ2. So it would be (9.17)ˆ2+(10.58)ˆ2=196.0253. Can someone help me with this please?

Without the angle between the vectors, you cannot calculate the magnitude of the resultant. Thay must have provided information about that angle when the problem was assigned.

In general, when adding two vectors, use the rule

c^2 = a^2 + b^2 + 2 ab cos C

where c is the the magnitude of the resultant, and and b are the magnitudes of the two vectors being added, and C is the angle that vector b deviates from the direction of vector a, when lined up head-to-tail.

So with the info provided in the question, you are saying there is no answer to this question as it is not giving us enough info?

That is the reality.

why are there such things as physics its so stupid and i hate it

Answer 1

I had the same question, and I put the answer as 19.17ft for the sum of the magnitudes, which was not right. Nor is using the pyth theorem give you the correct answer. From that, I would assume the 2 vectors with the respective magnitudes are pointing in different directions on a linear plane (although it is not given in the question) therefore you would have to find the difference in the magnitudes to get your answer. That is my assumption.