You walk 4 steps north. you turn and then walk 3 steps east. every step is the same length. what is the shortest distance from where you started to where you ended?

Hello there!

To solve this problem, you will use the Pythagorean Theorem to find the diagonal between these two points. a^2 + b^2= c^2

_ _ _ (three steps east)
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(four steps north)

To find the shortest distance, you need to find the diagonal.
You are given a and b. You need to find c.
A=4
B=3
4^2 + 3^2 = C^2
16 + 9 = C^2
25 = C^2
To get rid of the square and solve for only c, you will find the square root of 25, which is 5.

C= 5 (The shortest distance is 5 units.)
I hope this helps! :)