Question

given the coordinates of two points in the plane, you can use either the distance formula or the pythagorean theorem to find the distance between them.
a. true
b. false

Explanation:

The distance formula $d = \sqrt{(x_2 - x_1)^2+(y_2 - y_1)^2}$ is derived from the Pythagorean theorem. Given two points $(x_1,y_1)$ and $(x_2,y_2)$ in a plane, we can form a right - triangle with the line segment between them as the hypotenuse. The horizontal and vertical displacements are used in the Pythagorean relationship to find the length of the hypotenuse (distance between the points). So either can be used.

Answer:

A. True