GEOMETRY I

Geometry
Menu
1 Geometry
1.1 The Elements of Geometry
1.2 Lines and Angles
1.2.1 Polygons
1.2.2 Triangles
1.2.3 Quadrilaterals
1.2.4 Measurement of Polygons
1.2.5 Right Triangles
Talk Page

The Elements of Geometry

Geometry is a mathematical science concerned with the properties of figures, or shapes. When
applied to two-dimensional figures, those lying on a flat surface, this science is called plane
geometry. Many of the shapes dealt with in science and engineering are plane figures, and the
usual concern is the measurement of their areas and the lengths of their boundaries. Plane
geometry provides the mathematical tools to accomplish this. There are three basic building
blocks of plane geometry: point, line, andsurface.
A point is used to indicate position. It has no size- no width, length, or thickness. The point
allows a line to be generated, defined as "the path of a moving point." If the point always moves
in the same direction, a straight line will be generated. Strictly speaking, a line extends
indefinitely. It has no end in either direction. A line segment is a portion of a line. The
word line normally means a line segment. A line (line segment) has length but no width or
thickness.
A surface may be generated by a moving line that does not move in its own direction. Surfaces
have length and width but no thickness. Surfaces may be curved or flat. A surface generated by a
line that always moves in the same direction is a flat surface, orplane. For example:
A point moving in the same direction generates a straight line.

A line moving in the same direction generates a flat surface, or plane.

Plane geometry deals with figures on a plane surface. Solid geometry deals with figures that take
up space, or have volume, and will be discussed in another article.
Talk Page

Lines and Angles

If two lines lie in the same plane, or on the same plane surface, they must either be parallel or
they must intersect, or cross, each other. Parallel lines are two straight lines that lie in the same
plane and, even if extended infinitely, would not intersect. An example of both is shown below.

When two lines intersect, they form two pairs of equal angles, and the point of intersection is
the vertex of the angles. A single angle is defined when two intersecting lines terminate at the
vertex. The unit of measure of an angle is the degree, defined as 1/360 of a complete revolution.
Rotating a line about a point (the vertex) can form an angle, and when this line rotates through
one complete revolution, back to its starting point, it has turned through 360 degrees (normally
written 360).

There are four types of angles. Two perpendicular lines form a right angle. This angle
corresponds to 1/4 of a complete revolution, and so a right angle is exactly 90. An acute angle is
any angle less than 90. An obtuse angle is greater than 90. A straight angle is exactly 180 and
is called a straight angle because it forms a straight line.

Polygons
Many of the figures of plane geometry are polygons, defined as "closed figures bound by straight
line segments." The requirement of straight line segments excludes circles from this category,
although circles are also plane, closed figures. There is no limit as to the number of sides that a
polygon may have, but as a practical matter, there are only a few types that are normally dealt
with. Polygons are named according to their number of sides.
These are the most common polygons.

Other polygons are:

Hexagon - 6 sides

Heptagon - 7 sides

Octagon - 8 sides

Decagon - 10 sides

Dodecagon - 12 sides

In the general case, there are no restrictions on the lengths of the sides or on the sizes of the
angles. A special category of polygons is that of the regular polygon, defined as a polygon in
which all sides are of equal length and all angles are equal:

The angles shown in these figures are called interior angles, and the sum of the interior angles
for any closed polygon depends upon the number of sides. There is a relationship between the
sum of the interior angles and the number of sides for any polygon:
Sum of interior angles = (n - 2)(180) where n is the number of sides.
This relationship is true of all polygons, not only regular polygons. Thus, for a triangle, which
has three sides, the sum of the interior angles is always 180. For a quadrilateral, the sum is
always 360, etc. This is an important relationship because the size of an unknown angle in a
polygon can be determined if all the other angles are known.
For example, what is angle A in the pentagon shown below?

For a pentagon (5 sides), the sum of the interior angles is:

Sum = (5 - 2)(180) = 540
Therefore: A + 110 + 140 + 70 + 160 = 540
A + 480 = 540
A = 60
The two most common polygons used in science and engineering are the triangle and the
quadrilateral, and these will be studied in some detail.
Talk Page

Triangles
A triangle is one of the most important polygons. Not only does it arise frequently in geometry,
but it also forms the basis of another mathematical science, Trigonometry, which will be studied
later. A triangle has three sides, which may be of any length, so long as they form a closed figure.
A general triangle is shown below.

The three angles of a triangle, A, B, and C, always add up to 180, regardless of its shape: A + B +
C = 180. There are a number of special triangles in which there is a definite relationship among
the lengths of their sides. An equilateral triangle is the name given to a regular triangle that has
three equal sides. Since it has three equal sides, each of the interior angles is equal, all being 60.
An equilateral triangle has three equal sides and three equal angles.

An isosceles triangle has two equal sides, and the angles opposite these sides are equal:

A scalene triangle has no equal sides or equal angles. This is the most general type of triangle.

The names equilateral, isosceles, and scalene describe triangles according to relationships
between the lengths of their sides. Triangles can also be described according to the size of their
interior angles. A right triangle has one interior angle equal to 90.

Isosceles and scalene triangles can also be right triangles, but an equilateral triangle can never be
a right triangle. The right triangle is an important special category of triangles, and the science of
trigonometry is based on its properties.
An acute triangle is one in which all of the angles are acute angles (less than 90). An equilateral
triangle is a special acute triangle, since all three angles are equal. Finally, an obtuse

triangle contains one angle that is an obtuse angle (greater than 90). The other two angles must
be acute angles.
The points at which the sides of a triangle intersect are called vertices. There are clearly three
vertices in every triangle. A line originating at one vertex and perpendicular to the opposite side
is called an altitude. Every triangle has three altitudes. In an obtuse triangle, two of the altitudes
lie outside the triangle.

Talk Page

Quadrilaterals
The four-sided polygon, or quadrilateral, can assume many different forms. The most common
polygon has four sides of unequal length and four unequal interior angles. The sum of the interior
angles is always equal to 360.

Although this is the most general form of a quadrilateral, it is not particularly useful for
engineering applications. There are a number of special quadrilaterals that are named according
to the relationships between their sides and interior angles and commonly arise in engineering.

It also follows from the definition of a square that pairs of opposite sides must be parallel.

As the case of the square, the angles are each 90 so opposite sides are parallel. However, one
pair of opposite sides may be of different length from the other pair of opposite sides. Notice that
a square is a special type of rectangle. All squares are rectangles, but not all rectangles are
squares.

Notice that this definition says nothing about the interior angles. If the interior angles were each
90, then the parallelogram would be a rectangle. Therefore, every rectangle is a parallelogram,
but not every parallelogram is a rectangle.

Again, there are no restrictions on the interior angles (except, of course, that their sum must be
360). If the interior angles were each equal to 90, then the rhombus would be a square.

If the length of side "a" were equal to side "b", then the trapezoid would be a parallelogram.
These five quadrilaterals are the most common types. The next section deals with how to
measure the perimeters and areas of triangles and quadrilaterals.
1. A square is a very special quadrilateral that has four equal sides and four equal angles.
Since the angles are all equal, it follows that they are each 90, or right angles.
2. A rectangle is a quadrilateral that has four equal angles and has opposite sides of equal
length.
3. A parallelogram is a quadrilateral that has opposite sides equal in length and parallel.
4. A rhombus is a parallelogram that has four equal sides.

5. A trapezoid is a quadrilateral that has one pair of parallel opposite sides.

Talk Page

Measurement of Polygons
In dealing with polygons, there are two properties that usually are of concern: the length around
the boundary, or perimeter, and the area. The perimeter is easy to measure, since the lengths of
the sides are simply added. For example, what is the perimeter of the trapezoid shown below?

The measurement of area is a more complicated problem. The area of a polygon is the number of
square units that will exactly cover the polygon, or fit within its perimeter. Picture a square in
which each side has a length of 1 unit. That unit may be an inch, a foot, a mile, or any other unit
or length. The area of that square is 1 square unit. The area of a polygon is the number of these
square units that exactly fit within its boundary, covering the entire polygon. This number need
not be a whole number, sincefractions of the square unit might be needed to exactly fill the
polygon. The areas of triangles and quadrilaterals will be computed in this section.
The area of a square can be found by dividing the square into the proper number of square units.
Suppose there is a square in which the length of each side is 3 units. Covering the square with a
smaller square in which the length of each side is 1 unit requires 9 of these small squares:

The area of the square is then 9 square units. It would certainly be tedious to have to divide every
square into a number of smaller squares and add them up. The same result occurs when
multiplying the length of one side of the square by the length of the adjacent side. Since all sides
of a square have the same length, the area of a square equals the square of the length of one side:

The area of a rectangle is computed in the same way. In this case, the length of one side is not
equal to the length of an adjacent side.

Multiplying the length and the width is equivalent to moving a line of length W through a
distance L, which generates the rectangular surface.
The results for the area of a rectangle can be used to find the area of a parallelogram. Remember
that the rectangle is a special case of a parallelogram that has all interior angles equal to 90.
Shown below is a parallelogram in which a vertical line forms one vertex perpendicular to the
base. This line has length h.

Suppose that the figure is cut along the dotted line, and then the triangle piece is moved from the
left of the figure and fitted at the right.

This is now a rectangle with length b and width h, so the area is just A = bh. The length h is
called the altitude, or height. The altitude is the perpendicular distance between two opposite
sides. The length b is called the base of the rectangle.
A = bh P = 2b + 2h
P = 2(b + h)
The area of a parallelogram can be used to find the area of a triangle. Shown below is a triangle
with sides a, b, and c. From the vertex of the triangle labeled 1, construct a line of

length b parallel to the side of the triangle also having

length b. Similarly, from the vertex, labeled 2, construct a line of length aparallel to the side of
the triangle also having length a.

A parallelogram has now been formed. Constructing an altitude of length h, the area of the
parallelogram will be A = bh. The area of the parallelogram is just twice the area of the original
triangle, so the area of the triangle is half the area of the parallelogram.

A = 1/2 bh
P=a+b+c
The altitude h can be constructed from any vertex of the triangle, so long as it is perpendicular to
the opposite side. In the equation for the area, the side b is the side that is perpendicular to the
altitude. This side usually is called the base of the triangle.
The results for the area of a rectangle and the area of a triangle can be combined to find the area
of a trapezoid.

Two altitudes of equal length are constructed that divide the trapezoid into two triangles and a
rectangle:

Let the base of the left triangle have length x and the base of the right triangle have length y. The
area of the left triangle is 1/2 hx, and the area of the right triangle is 1/2 hy. The area of the
rectangle is bh, so the total area of the trapezoid is the sum of the area of the three pieces:
A = 1/2 hx + 1/2 hy + bh
A = 1/2 h (x + y) + bh
But x + y is related to the base of the trapezoid, since x + b + y = B, the length of the lower base.
Therefore, x + y = B-b, and so the area of the trapezoid is just:

A = 1/2 h (B - b) + bh
= 1/2 hB - 1/2 hb + hb
= 1/2 hB + 1/2 hb

A = 1/2 h (B + b) i.e., one-half the product of the altitude and the sum of the bases.
Talk Page

Right Triangles
Three types of triangles have been identified: equilateral, isosceles, and scalene. There is one other very important category of
triangles, namely the right triangle. A right triangle contains one 90, or right, angle:

The side opposite the right angle is given the special name hypotenuse; the other sides are called legs. Since the right triangle
contains a 90 angle, the other two angles, A and B, must add up to 90 (recall that there is a total of 180 in the angles of every
triangle). There is an important rule that relates the lengths of the legs of a right triangle and the hypotenuse. This rule, called
thePythagorean Rule (after the Greek mathematician Pythagoras) states that in every right triangle, the square of the length of the
hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides.

It should be emphasized that this rule applies only to right triangles. It provides a powerful tool for calculating the length of an
unknown side of a triangle when the other two sides are known, even though nothing is known about the interior angles other than
that one of them is a right angle. For example, find the length of the leg a in the right triangle shown below.

GEOMETRY II AND FUNDAMENTALS OF TRIGONOMETRY

Talk Page

Geometry II
Menu

1 Geometry II
1.1 Circles
1.2 Rectangular Solids and Cubes
1.3 Cylinders
1.4 Spheres
2 Trigonometry
2.1 Definitions
2.2 Trigonometric Ratios and the Sine Function
2.3 The Cosine Function and Right Triangles
2.4 The Tangent Function
2.5 Inverse Trigonometric Functions

2.6 Trigonometric Identities

2.7 Radian Measure
Talk Page

Circles
All of the shapes studied in Geometry I were bounded by straight lines. The areas of these figures could be
calculated in a straight-forward manner by dividing the figures into parts with known areas and then adding the
areas of each part. The perimeters were obtained by simple addition. There is one other plane figure remaining
that is of great importance. This figure is the circle.
A circle is a plane closed curve such that every point on the curve is the same distance from a fixed point called
the center of the circle. The length of the curve that forms the circle is called the circumference. (It could just as
well be called a perimeter.)
The following figure is a circle. Point O is the center.

The distances OA, OB, OC, OD, and OE are equal.

The straight line that connects the center of the circle to any point on the boundary is called the radius. In the
example above, each of the lines, OA, OB, OC, OD, and OE, is a radius. A straight line that connects opposite
sides of the circle and passes through the center is called the diameter. There are clearly an infinite number of
diameters in any circle, all of the same length. In the example above, the line DE is a diameter of the circle. The
radius of a circle, or r, is half of the diameter, or D.
The radius of a circle intersects the circumference at a single point. When two different radii intersect the
circumference, the length of the circumference between the two points of intersection is called an arc.

With reference to the figure above, we say that the radius subtends an arc of length AB.

In the very early days of the study of geometry, it was found that for any circle, the ratio of the circumference of
the circle to the diameter of the circle was always constant. This ratio is given a special symbol, the Greek letter
(pronounced pie). This ratio is true for any circle, regardless of its size:

The value of is 3.1415927. . . . . (where the dots indicate a continuing series of digits). When not using a
calculator, using a value of = 3.1416 gives results that are sufficiently accurate. Since the diameter is twice the
radius, we can express the circumference as C = 2r.
Find the circumference of a circle with a diameter of 3.6 inches.

C=D
C = ()(3.6) inches
C = 11.309734 inches
C = 11.3 inches
When the areas of polygons were computed, it was found that they could be calculated by moving a line
through some distance. This procedure is valid for a straight-sided figure, but it is not applicable to a circle. The
area of a circle is given by the expression:

A = r2
In terms of the diameter, the area is:

Find the area of a circle with a diameter of 3.6 inches.

The circle is special because it encloses a greater area for a given perimeter or circumference than any other
plane figure.
Talk Page

Rectangular Solids and Cubes

In a study of plane geometry, the main concern is with the properties of two-dimensional figures; that is, their
areas and perimeters. Now it is time to extend the concepts of plane geometry to solid geometry, or the study of
objects that occupy space, or have volume. Solid volumes are generated by moving surfaces. For example, if a
rectangle is moved in a direction perpendicular to its surface, a rectangular solid will be generated.

The rectangle shown on the front face is moved in a direction perpendicular to its surface. All of the angles of a
rectangular solid are right angles, and a rectangular solid has six rectangular faces. The surface area of the
solid is the sum of the surface areas of the six faces.
Volume is measured in terms of cubic units, such as cubic inches or cubic feet. In analogy to the unit of area,
the unit cube is a rectangular solid in which each side has a length of 1 unit. The volume is then the number of
these unit cubes that will completely fill the solid. The volume of a rectangular solid can be derived by
examining the way in which it is generated. Starting with a rectangle of height h and width w, the area of the
rectangle is A = hw. By moving this rectangle a distance 1 unit, it is in effect stacking up 1 of these rectangles 1
unit of distance apart. The volume is equal to the surface area of the rectangle times the distance through
which this area has moved.

The surface area of the rectangular solid is the sum of the surface areas of the six faces. In the example above,
the front and back faces each have an area of hw, the two side faces each have an area of lh, and the top and
bottom faces have an area of lw. The total surface area is then:

A = 2hw + 2lh + 2lw

Find the volume and surface area of a rectangular solid 4 inches long, 2 inches wide, and 3 inches high.

When each side of the rectangular solid is the same length, the figure is called a cube. A cube is generated by
moving a square through a distance equal to the length of one of its sides. The volume and surface area of a
cube can be found from the volume and surface area of a rectangular solid simply by making all the sides
equal.

Volume = s x s x s = s3
Area = 2s x s + 2s x s + 2s x s = 6s2 s = length of one side
Notice that the volume of a rectangular solid is a length raised to the third power (cubed).

Talk Page

Cylinders
Take a rectangle and rotate it 360 about one of its edges. The resulting solid figure is called a cylinder.

The top and bottom faces of the cylinder are circles, and the straight line that connects the centers of the circles
is the axis of the cylinder.
The height of the cylinder is the perpendicular distance between the two circular faces, or bases. The cylinder
shown here is actually a special type of cylinder called a right circular cylinder. The axis of the cylinder is
perpendicular to each base because the cylinder was generated by rotating a rectangle. If a parallelogram was
used instead of a rectangle, a cylinder would still have been generated, but the axis would not be perpendicular
to each base.

For now, the only concern will be with the right circular cylinder. If the width of the rectangle used to generate
the cylinder is r, then each base will be a circle of radius r. If the length of the rectangle is h, then the height of
the cylinder will also be h.

The volume of the cylinder is just the area of the circular base times the height of the cylinder. Again, this can
be regarded as stacking h circles one unit of distance apart.

The lateral area of a cylinder is the area of the curved surface of the cylinder. This lateral area can be
generated by moving the circumference of the circular base through the height of the cylinder. The
circumference is 2r, and so the lateral area is 2rh. The total surface area of the cylinder is the lateral area plus
the area of each base. Since each base is a circle, the total area of the bases is 2(r2). Thus, the total surface
area of a cylinder is 2rh + 2r2.

Find the volume of a reinforcement rod that is 0.440 inches in diameter and 165 inches long.

V = r2h
V = () (0.220)2 (165) in3
V = 25.088759 in3
V = 25.1 in3
Talk Page

Spheres
Take a circle and rotate it 360 about one of its diameters and it will generate a solid figure known as a sphere.
A sphere is a solid bounded by a curved surface such that every point on the surface is the same distance from
a point within the solid. This point is the center of the sphere, and the distance is just the radius of the circle that
generates the sphere. A diameter of the sphere is a straight line segment through the center with its ends on
the surface. Its length is equal to twice the radius, as in a circle.

The volume of a sphere is not as easy to compute as the volume of a rectangular solid or cylinder. This is
because the volume cannot be generated by moving a fixed area through some distance. The volume of the
sphere is given by the expression:
Note that the volume is again in terms of the cube of a length.
What is the volume of a spherical tank 4 ft. in diameter?

The surface area of a sphere is given by the formula:

What is the surface area of a spherical pellet 0.42 inches in diameter?

A hemisphere is just half of a sphere, so its volume will also be half that of a sphere. Care must be taken,
however, when calculating the surface area. If interest is only in the surface area of the curved surface, this
area will be half the surface area of the sphere. If the total surface area is wanted though, it is necessary to
include the area of the circular base.

The sphere has a unique property that distinguishes it from every other solid. For a fixed volume, the sphere
has the smallest area of any solid. In other words, for the same surface area, we can enclose more volume with
a sphere than with any other solid. This has application in the design of buildings, especially sports arenas,
since a smaller surface area means both less material and less heat loss.
Talk Page

Trigonometry
This section describes the branch of mathematics known as trigonometry.
Talk Page

Definitions
Trigonometry is the branch of mathematics that is concerned with the relationship between lines and angles. It
is a very useful mathematical tool for science and engineering, for it provides techniques for indirect
measurement. The height of a flagpole or the width of a river, for example, can be determined without climbing
one or swimming the other. As will be shown, this is possible because the direct measurement of an angle
allows us to calculate a length.
There are many ways of defining an angle. For our purposes, the most useful definition involves the rotation of
a line about a point.
Angle A is the amount of rotation of line AB rotating about point A to line AC. AB is called the initial side, and
AC is called theterminal side of the angle.

The size of angle A in the example above, in terms of amount of rotation, does not depend upon the lengths of
line segments AB and AC. If these segments were extended indefinitely, the size of the angle would remain the
same. The amount of rotation is measured in degrees, with 360 corresponding to one complete revolution of

the line AC (terminal side). Notice also in the example above that line AC has been rotated in a counterclockwise direction from the initial side. By convention, it is agreed that this shall be a positive angle. If the
terminal side were rotated in the clockwise direction, it would result in a negative angle.

Notice that the same angle can now be described in two different ways. If the terminal side were rotated
through a positive angle of 330, it would be in the same position, relative to the initial side, as if it had been
rotated through an angle of -30.

The concept of a negative angle is consistent with the discussion of negative numbers in general because it
indicates direction from some reference point. In the case of numbers, it shows direction opposite to the
positive numbers on the number line, starting at a reference point called zero. In the case of angles, it shows
rotation in the opposite direction from the reference point, or initial side.
Talk Page

Trigonometric Ratios and the Sine Function

Although the angle has been defined, its relationship to lengths has not been discussed. Suppose a
rectangular, or x-y, coordinate system is drawn and an arbitrary point (x 1, y1) in the first quadrant is chosen.
Connect that point to the origin by a line called theradius vector. Angle A is the angle that the radius vector
makes with the x-axis. Note that the radius vector is the terminal side of angle A, and that angle A is positive.
The radius vector has length r1.

The x-coordinate is called the abscissa and the y-coordinate is called the ordinate. The abscissa, the ordinate,
and the radius vector form a right triangle. Measure the ordinate and the radius vector and form their ratio:

Extend the radius vector so that it has a new length r 2, but keep angle A the same. The radius vector will pass
through a new point (x2, y2).

By measuring the new ordinate, y2, and the new radius vector, r2, and forming their ratio y2/r2, it is found that this
ratio is exactly the same as the ratio y 1/r1. For a fixed angle A, the ratio of the ordinate and the radius vector is
constant. The ordinate and the radius vector can change, but their ratio does not. This ratio is given the special
name sine (pronounced sign). Since this ratio depends only on the size of angle A, we say that it is a function of
angle A, that is:

This is read as the sine of angle A is the ratio of the ordinate to the radius vector. (The word sine is
abbreviated sin.)
The ordinate is nothing more than the projection of the radius vector onto the vertical, or y, axis. From the point
(x, y) we construct a line perpendicular to the y-axis. The distance along the y-axis from the origin to the point
of intersection is the projection of the radius vector.

The sine of an angle is a pure number since it is a ratio of two lengths. Associated with every angle, then, is a
number called the sineof that angle that only depends on the size of the angle. This provides a tool for
measuring an unknown length if by measuring one length and the angle, the other length can be calculated. It
is often necessary to calculate the sine of every angle between 0 and 360. To accomplish this, let us rotate
the radius vector to see what happens to the ratio of the length of the y-axis projection and the radius vector.
When angle A is 0, the radius vector lies along the x-axis. Consequently, there is no projection along the yaxis, and so sin 0 = 0. As angle A increases, the projection along the y-axis also increases until A = 90. At this
point, the projection has the same length as the radius vector, so sin 90 = 1.

When the angle exceeds 90, the projections begin to decrease until A = 180. The radius vector now lies along
the negative x-axis, and the projection along the y-axis is again 0.

When the radius vector sweeps from 180 to 270, the ratio of the projection on the y-axis to the radius vector
again increases from 0 to 1, just as it does when the radius vector sweeps from 0 to 90. In this case, however,
the projection is along the negative y-axis, so the ratio is negative.

When angle A is 270, the radius vector lies along the negative y-axis, so the ratio of the y-axis projection and
the radius vector is -1 (the projection is along the negative y-axis).
Finally, when the radius vector sweeps from 270 to 360, the y-axis projection decreases until, at 360 (or 0),
the projection is zero.
It is helpful to graph the variation of the sine of an angle as a function of the angle itself, to see how the sine
changes as the angle changes from 0 to 360. The sine of the angle is plotted on the vertical axis, and the
angle is plotted on the horizontal axis.

There are a number of features of interest on this curve. Note that the absolute value of the sine of an angle
can never be greater than 1. This is because the length of the projection of the radius vector onto the y-axis can
never exceed the length of the radius vector itself. It can equal the length of the radius vector, as occurs at 90
and 270, when the radius vector lies along the positive y-axis and the negative y-axis, respectively. At 0, 180,
and 360 (or 0 again) the radius vector lies along the y-axis. The y-axis projection is 0, so the sine of these
angles is also zero. For any angle, then, the sine of the angle can be found by reading its value from the graph.
In practice, these values are obtained more accurately from your calculator.
Notice also from the graph that two different angles may have the same sine. For example, the y-axis projection
of the radius vector is the same length when the angle is either 45 or 135, so the sine of these angles is the
same:

The fact that two different angles may have the same sine will be of some importance when using the sine
functions to solve problems involving triangles.
Talk Page

The Cosine Function and Right Triangles

The sine function was the ratio of the projection of the radius vector onto the y-axis to the radius vector itself.
Now project the radius vector onto the x-axis. As in the case of the sine function, the ratio of the x-axis
projection to the radius vector depends only on the angle. The projection is called the abscissa, and the ratio of
the abscissa to the radius vector is called the cosine of the angle A.

The word cosine usually is abbreviated cos. The cosine function can be evaluated as the radius vector sweeps
from 0 to 360 in exactly the same manner as for the sine function. For example, when angle A is 0, the
radius vector lies along the x-axis, meaning the radius vectors projection onto the x-axis has the same length as
the radius vector. Therefore, cos 0 = 1. As the radius vector goes from 0 to 90, the x-axis projection, or
abscissa, decreases.

When angle A is 90, there is no projection on the x-axis, so cos 90 = 0. Just as for the sine function, a graph of
the cosine function can be constructed:

This graph is very similar to that of the sine function. The maximum absolute value of the cosine is one, since
the length of the abscissa can never exceed that of the radius vector. In this case, the maximum values occur at
0 and 180 where the radius vector lies along the positive x-axis or negative x-axis, respectively. At 90 and
270, the value of the cosine is 0 since the radius vector lies along the y-axis and hence has no projection onto
the x-axis. By using this graph, the cosine of any angle between 0 and 360 can be found.
The sine and cosine functions have been defined in terms of the projection of the radius vector onto the y- and
x-axis, but these definitions can be made much more general. The radius vector, the projection on the y-axis
(the ordinate), and the projection on the x-axis (the abscissa) form the three sides of a right triangle:

With regard to angle A, the sine of A is the ratio of the ordinate to the radius vector. It is also the ratio of the side
opposite the angle to the hypotenuse:
Similarly, the cosine of A is the ratio of the side adjacent the angle to the hypotenuse:

These definitions apply to each of the two acute angles of the right triangle. For example, compute the sine and
cosine of each acute angle in the right triangle shown.

This example illustrates an important point. Notice that the sine of angle A is equal to the cosine of angle B.
Also, note that angle A plus angle B is equal to 90, since the two acute angles of a right triangle must always
total 90. Therefore, A = 90 - B, and sin A = sin (90 - B) = cos B. By referring back to the graphs of the sine and
cosine functions, it can be seen that by sliding the sine curve 90 to the left, it becomes a cosine curve (or by
sliding the cosine curve 90 to the right, it becomes a sine curve). Two angles that add up to 90 are
called complementary angles. Therefore, the sine of an angle is always equal to the cosine of the
complementary angle, and vice versa.
Talk Page

The Tangent Function

There is one more very important trigonometric ratio to be studied, namely, the tangent.

Compute the tangent of each acute angle:

Unlike the sine or cosine, the tangent of an angle can have a value greater than 1. Notice that the tangent of an
angle is just the reciprocal of the tangent of the complementary angle:

These three functions, the sine, cosine, and tangent, are the foundations of trigonometry. Knowing an angle
and a side, these functions can be used to determine the unknown sides of a right triangle. For any angle, the
sine, cosine, or tangent can be obtained from your calculator.
There are three other trigonometric ratios that are related to the ratios that have already been presented. They
are included here for the sake of completeness, although they are not needed for most engineering
calculations. The cosecant, abbreviated csc, of an angle is just the reciprocal of the sine of the angle:

The secant, abbreviated sec, is the reciprocal of the cosine:

The cotangent is the reciprocal of the tangent:

These three functions do not introduce anything new, but they are convenient for some problems. Remember
that they are just reciprocals of the three primary functions, and so can be determined from them.
In summary, the six trigonometric functions are described as follows:

Talk Page

Inverse Trigonometric Functions

The methods developed so far enable us to answer questions such as "what is the sine of 30?" or "what is the
cosine of 77?" There are occasions, however, when we need to know the opposite question; that is, "what is
the angle whose sine is 0.5?" This is given by the arc function, or inverse function, and has the same
relationship to the trigonometric functions as does the antilogarithm to the logarithmic function. The angle
whose sine is 0.5 would be indicated as: arc sin 0.5 or sin-1 0.5
The term arc can be used as a prefix to any of the trigonometric functions. Using the inverse notation sin-1, it is
important to realize that the -1 is not an exponent. It merely indicates that the inverse is to be found. Your
calculator can be used to compute these functions.
Talk Page

Trigonometric Identities
In studying equations, it is found that all equations are of two types: conditional equations or identities. An
identity is an equation that is always true regardless of the value of the unknown. There are relationships
between the trigonometric functions that are always true, regardless of the size of the angle. These
relationships are called trigonometric identities.
Some of these identities have previously been presented. For example, the sine function is defined as:

The cosecant function is:

Therefore, for any angle A, it must be true that:

or:

Another identity involves the sine, cosine, and tangent. The sine function is:

The cosine function is:

Dividing the sine by the cosine, the result is:

However, this is just the tangent function. Thus, for any angle A:

One of the most important trigonometric identities can be developed using the Pythagorean Rule. As an
example, the right triangle shown below is to be evaluated.

It is known that: a2 + b2 = c2.

Dividing this equation by c2 results in:

However, is just sin A, and is cos A. Therefore: sin2 A + cos2 A = 1

As a final example, the use of the Pythagorean Rule again (but this time dividing the equation by b2), results in:

is the tangent of A, and is the secant of A.

Therefore for any angle A: tan2 A + 1 = sec2 A.
There are many trigonometric identities, but these are the most common. The value of these identities lies in
the fact that they frequently permit the simplification of a problem. For instance, an expression like sin2 37.3 +
cos2 37.3 can be immediately replaced it by the value 1.
The trigonometric functions are all double-valued; that is, two different angles have the same sine, cosine, or
tangent. This fact can be used to relate the trigonometric function of any angle greater than 90 to the
trigonometric function of an angle between 0 and 90. For any angle between 90 and 180. sin = sin (180 - ) cos
= -cos (180 - ) tan = -tan (180 - )
For example: sin 150 = sin (180 - 150) = sin 30 cos 150 = -cos (180 - 150) = -cos 30 tan 150 = -tan (180 - 150)
= -tan 30
When the angle lies between 180 and 270: sin = -sin ( - 180) cos = -cos ( - 180) tan = tan ( - 180)
For example: sin 240 = -sin(240 - 180) = -sin 60
Finally, when the angle lies between 270 and 360: sin = -sin (360 - ) cos = cos (360 - ) tan = -tan (360 - )
Talk Page

Radian Measure
Angles normally are measured in degrees, with 360 defining a complete revolution. There is another measure
of angle, however, that frequently arises in science and engineering. This unit is the radian, abbreviated rad.

The radian is defined with respect to a circle. Suppose that a circle of radius, r, is rotated such that the radius
subtends an arc of length, s, on the circumference of the circle.

In rotating, the radius has moved through an angle called . When the length of the arc is exactly equal to the
radius of the circle, the angle is defined to be 1 radian:
When s = r, = 1 radian.
A relationship between radians and degrees can be found by rotating the radius through one complete
revolution, or 360. The length of the arc will then be the circumference of the circle, 2r. How many times must
an arc of distance r be added up so that it equals the circumference of a circle? The answer is 2 times.
Therefore, 360 is divided into 2 segments, and by definition each segment is equal to 1 radian. Therefore:

Radians can be converted to degrees by multiplying by:

Change three radians to degrees:

To convert degrees to radians, simply perform the inverse operation, i.e., multiply by:

Change 90 to radians.

Since 360 corresponds to 2 radians, these conversions will present no problem.