Question

Lucy has to run two errands. She starts from home and travels 3 miles south to the post office. From the post office, she travels 4 miles east to the gas station. Then, from the gas station, she travels 5 miles to return home. The entire trip forms a triangle.
What was the smallest angle made in her trip?

It is at the gas station.
It is at Lucy’s home.
It is at the post office.
It depends on the direction Lucy is traveling.

Answer 1

My answer is at the gas station. I hope my answer helped.

When Lucy traveled to the post office and then to the gas station the angle was 90 degrees, at the post office. Then when Lucy was traveling back home from the gas station the angle was a 45 degree. So the smallest angle made during her tip was at the gas station.

Answer 2

Lucy starts from home and travels 3 miles south to the post office. From the post office, she travels 4 miles east to the gas station. As it is known south and east directions form right angle. Since the entire trip forms a triangle, this triangle is right with right angle at post office.

Call the vertices of this triangle P - post office, G - gas station, H - home. Then HP and PG are legs of this triangle and GH is hypotenuse.

From the given data:

• HP=3;
• PG=4;
• GH=5;
• ∠P=90°.

The smallest angle is opposite to the smallest side. The smallest side is leg HP, so the smallest angle is G that is the angle at gas station.

Answer: correct choice is A.