Two cyclists leave the corner of State Street and Main Street simultaneously. State Street and Main Street are not at right angles; the cyclists' paths have an angle of 135° between them. How far apart are the cyclists after they each travel 3 miles? The answers below are given in miles. Hint: Use the Law of Cosines

Answer:5.54 miles (with the assumption both cyclist possess the same acceleration)

Explanation:

Let a = distance between the cyclists

b = distance travelled by state street cycler

c = distance travelled by main street cycler

From the question b=c

Using cosine rule

a^2 = b^2+c^2 - 2*b*c * cos (135°)

a^2 = 30.72

a = sqrt (30.72)

a = 5.54miles