Question

a flying squirrel lives in a nest that is 7.8 meters up in a tree, but wants to eat an acorn that is on the ground 4.9 meters away from the base of her tree. if the flying squirrel glides from her nest to the acorn, then scurries back to the base of the tree, and then climbs back up the tree to her nest, how far will the flying squirrel travel in total? if necessary, round to the nearest tenth. meters

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate glide distance (Pythagoras)

The glide path forms a right triangle with height 7.8m and base 4.9m.
$$d_{glide} = \sqrt{7.8^2 + 4.9^2} = \sqrt{60.84 + 24.01} = \sqrt{84.85} \approx 9.21$$

Step2: Sum all distances

Total distance = glide + scurry + climb = $9.21 + 4.9 + 7.8 \approx 21.91$
Round to nearest tenth: 21.9? Wait, recalculate $\sqrt{84.85}$: 9.2114, so 9.2114+4.9=14.1114+7.8=21.9114≈21.9? Wait, wait 7.8+4.9=12.7, plus 9.2=21.9. Yes, 21.9 meters. (Correction: initial miscalculation, 21.9 is correct)

Wait final answer: 21.9 meters.

Answer:

23.0 meters