Sample Response: The absolute value of a real number is the distance from 0 on the number line. The absolute value of a complex number is the distance from the origin in the complex plane. Both are distances, and therefore both are positive values. You need to use the distance formula or the Pythagorean theorem to calculate the absolute value of a complex number. Compare your response to the sample response. Which of these did your response include? Check all of the boxes that apply. The real number is on the number line, but the complex number is in the complex plane. Both are distances. Both are positive values. The distance formula or the Pythagorean theorem is used to calculate the absolute value of a complex number.