UPSC Prelims 1999·GS1·science-and-technology·science and technology

At a given time, two players are standing on a play-field. The cartesian coordinates of their locations are (20, 60) and (-40, -20) units. What is the distance between the players?

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Last updated 8 Jul 2026, 4:39 pm IST
  1. A60 units
  2. B80 units
  3. C100 unitsCorrect
  4. D140 units

Explanation

To find the distance between two points on a cartesian plane, we use the distance formula: the square root of the sum of the squares of the differences in the x and y coordinates.

Step 1: Find the difference in x coordinates. 20 minus minus 40 equals 20 plus 40, which is 60.

Step 2: Find the difference in y coordinates. 60 minus minus 20 equals 60 plus 20, which is 80.

Step 3: Square these values and add them. 60 squared is 3600. 80 squared is 6400. 3600 plus 6400 equals 10000.

Step 4: Take the square root of the sum. The square root of 10000 is 100.

Therefore, the distance between the two players is 100 units. The correct option is C.

science-and-technology: At a given time, two players are standing on a play-field. The cartesian coordinates of their locations are (20, 60) and
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