Questions tagged [geometry]

For questions about geometric shapes, congruences, similarities, transformations, as well as the properties of classes of figures, points, lines, and angles.

Geometry is one of the classical disciplines of math. It is derived from two Latin words, "geo" + "metron" meaning earth & measurement. Thus it is concerned with the properties and relations of points, lines, surfaces, solids, and higher dimensional analogs. Since its earliest days, geometry has served as a practical guide for measuring lengths, areas, and volumes, and geometry is still used for this purpose today. Geometry is important because the world is made up of different shapes and spaces.

Geometry has applications to many fields, including art, architecture, physics, as well as to other branches of mathematics.

Sub-fields of contemporary geometry:

$1.\quad$ Algebraic geometry – is a branch of geometry studying zeroes of multivariate polynomials. It includes the linear and polynomial algebraic equations used for finding these sets of zeros. The applications of algebraic geometry include cryptography, string theory, etc.

$2.\quad$ Discrete geometry – is concerned with the relative positions of simple geometric objects, such as points, lines, triangles, circles etc.

$3.\quad$ Differential geometry – uses techniques of algebra and calculus for problem-solving. The applications of differential geometry include general relativity in physics, etc.

$4.\quad$ Euclidean geometry – The study of plane and solid figures on the basis of axioms and theorems including points, lines, planes, angles, congruence, similarity, solid figures. It has a wide range of applications in computer science, modern mathematics problem solving, crystallography etc.

$5.\quad$ Convex geometry – includes convex shapes in Euclidean space using techniques of real analysis. It has application in optimization and functional analysis in number theory.

$6.\quad$ Topology – is concerned with properties of space under continuous mapping. Its application includes consideration of compactness, completeness, continuity, filters, function spaces, grills, clusters and bunches, hyperspace topologies, initial and final structures, metric spaces, metrization, nets, proximal continuity, proximity spaces, separation axioms, and uniform spaces.

$7.\quad$ Plane geometry – This wing of geometry deals with flat shapes which can be drawn on a piece of paper. These include lines, circles & triangles of two dimensions.

$8.\quad$ Solid geometry – It deals with $3$-dimensional objects like cubes, prisms, cylinders & spheres.

Reference:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geometry

50021 questions
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Find perpendicular distance from point to line in 3D?

I have a Line going through points B and C; how do I find the perpendicular distance to A? $$A= (4,2,1)$$ $$B= (1,0,1)$$ $$C = (1,2,0)$$
Conor
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4 answers

How do we know that common rearrangement proofs of the Pythagorean theorem work for any right triangle?

I’m a little bit puzzled by geometrical proofs, like the common algebraic proof for the Pythagorean theorem listed Wikipedia's "Pythagorean theorem" entry. I understand the idea of arranging the right triangles and the area $c^2$ in a neat way to…
Name
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Intuition for a relationship between volume and surface area of an $n$-sphere

The volume of an $n$-sphere of radius $R$ is $$V_n(R) = \frac{\pi^{n/2} R^n}{\Gamma(\frac{n}2+1)}$$ and the surface area is $$S_n(R) = \frac{2\pi^{n/2}R^{n-1}}{\Gamma(\frac{n}2)} = \frac{n\pi^{n/2}R^{n-1}}{\Gamma(\frac{n}2+1)} = \frac{d…
Chris Taylor
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Infinite Sequence of Inscribed Pentagrams - Where does it converge?

If you draw a (not necessarily regular) pentagram, there will be a pentagon-shaped hole in the middle. You can connect points to inscribe a pentagram within that hole, and then inscribe another inside that, etc... Is anything known about the point…
Lopsy
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Points in $\Bbb {R}^2$ that can be reached via steps which are $1/5$ of a unit circle.

I was playing around with this demo of Project Euler Problem 208 which allows you to take steps which are "left" or "right" arcs of $1/5$ of a unit circle. Here's an example walk, which starts at the blue dot pointing vertically up, and which…
Peter Kagey
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17
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7 answers

Do higher dimensions have axes?

I understand that the three dimensions each have their own axes, for lines, planes and volumes, and that 4 dimension has an axis but it is complicated and hard to determine, but from what I understand is that it is there. So I was wondering,…
C. Jordan
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3 answers

How do I find the diameters of the circles in this geometry puzzle?

My family and I like to do a daily quiz but this particular question has had us baffled for weeks. Please help. We only have basic mathematical knowledge.
17
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Are non-circular swords possible?

I was reminded of this by our recent discussion of the old chestnut about possible shapes for utility hole covers. Perhaps this question is less familiar. A sword can be made in any shape at all, but if you want to be able to put it into a scabbard,…
MJD
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How do I cut a square in half?

I have a square that's $10\mathrm{m} \times 10\mathrm{m}$. I want to cut it in half so that I have a square with half the area. But if I cut it from top to bottom or left to right, I don't get a square, I get a rectangle! I know the area of the…
Larry Wang
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4 answers

How do I find the projection of a point onto a plane

Lets say I have the point $(x, y, z)$ and the plane with normal $(a, b, c)$ with the point $(d, e, f)$. I am trying to use this in $3D$ programming. Thank you!
DogDog
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16
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4 answers

Greatest possible measure of $\angle A$ in an isosceles triangle $ABC$

I am a high schooler studying for the SAT, and I came across this question. In isosceles triangle $ABC$, side $\overline{BC}$ is longer than the other two sides. If the degree measure of $\angle A$ is a multiple of 22, calculate the greatest…
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Why isn't $ SA_{\text{cube}} = 3x^2 $?

Related to "volume of sphere", why is the surface area of a cube not equal to the derivative of its volume? If you think about a sphere, it makes sense that the rate of change of the volume (with respect to $r$) yields the surface area ($SA$) =…
bobobobo
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Drawing the longest line segment contained in an area

Inside a rectangle, this line segment would be its diagonal. Inside a circle, this line segment would be its diameter. Inside a more "jagged" shape, it would be: However, suppose we consider an irregular area, such as The longest possible line…
Yiyuan Lee
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15
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5 answers

How is a Circle Just a Bunch of Triangles?

I am somehow supposed to draw how a circle is a bunch of triangles, but I don't see how it is possible. Can someone help me, and give a few ideas?
15
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5 answers

What is the dot product and why do we need it?

I understand how to calculate the dot product of the vectors. But I don't actually understand what a dot product is, and why it's needed. Could you answer these questions?
user3150201
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