Question

On a fishing trip Justin rides in a boat 12 km south. The fish aren't biting so they go 4 km west. They then follow a school of fish 1 km north. What distance did they cover?

Answer 1

Given

12 km south

4 km west

1 km north

Procedure

Let's do a diagram

The distance they covered is just the sum of all the distance they went

Total distance = 12 + 4 + 1 = 17 km

The displacement, however, is the vector sum. It answer's the question of how far are you from your starting point.