Two forces act on a point at right angles: 8 newtons north and 6 newtons east. What is the resultant force?

Correct answer to question 54 (Mechanical Comprehension): 10 newtons

Method

Forces at right angles combine like the sides of a right triangle, so the resultant is the square root of 64 plus 36, which is 10 newtons. Simply adding them to get 14 would only be right if they pointed the same way.