How is the distance between two points (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) calculated?

The distance between two points in a two-dimensional space is calculated using the distance formula, which is derived from the Pythagorean theorem. The points are represented as (x1, y1) and (x2, y2). According to the distance formula, the distance is found by taking the difference of the x-coordinates, squaring it, taking the difference of the y-coordinates, squaring that, and then adding these two results together. Finally, the square root of that sum gives the distance.

Specifically, the formula is:

Distance = √((x2 - x1)² + (y2 - y1)²)

This formula represents the hypotenuse of a right triangle where the legs correspond to the differences in the x-coordinates and y-coordinates. Therefore, choosing this formula allows for the correct computation of the distance between any two points in a Cartesian plane, making it the adequate choice for this question.

The other options do not accurately use the mathematical principles required to determine distance.