Randall D. Knight — Vectors and Coordinate Systems: Problem 42

The bacterium E. coli is a single-cell organism that lives in the gut of healthy animals, including humans. When grown in a uniform medium in the laboratory, these bacteria swim along zig-zag paths at a constant speed of \(20\text{ \mu m/s}\). FIGURE P3.42 shows the trajectory of an E. coli as it moves from point A to point E. What are the magnitude and direction of the bacterium's average velocity for the entire trip?