A man goes 24 m due west and then 7 m due north. How far is he from the starting point?

Given a man goes 24 m due west and then 7 m due north.

We know that the Pythagoras theorem state that in a right angled triangle, the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides.

Now, in right triangle ABC,

⇒ BC² = AB² + AC²

= 24² + 7²

= 576 + 49

= 625

∴ BC = 25 m