Triangle problems are some of the most common types of mathematics problems you will find when first studying geometry and trigonometry. Some might argue that one triangle concept in particular, the Pythagorean Theorem, is one of the most famous and well-known concepts of all! I have gone into detail on this blog about several trigonometry…
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The Theorem of Pythagoras Explained
The Theorem of Pythagoras is a specific case of the Cosine Law that applies specifically to right angle triangles. With it, and given any two sides of a right angle triangle, you can find the third side. Then having solved all the sides of the triangle, you can use the standard trig identities (Sine, Cosine,…
Trigonometry – Cosine Law
The Cosine Law works similarly to the Sine Law that I have already discussed. Actually, it may seem somewhat familiar to you. While the Cosine Law can be used on any triangle, the Pythagorean Theorem is a specific case of the Cosine Law which strictly applies to right angle triangles. It’s a bit more of…
Trigonometry – Sine Law
The trig functions that I’ve discussed so far (Sine, Cosine, and Tangent) will be incredibly useful to you when working specifically with right angle triangles. However, of course, not all triangles have a 90 degree angle in them. So can you still use these functions? Well, yes, but in a different way. One way is…
Trigonometry – Secant, Cosecant, Cotangent
In addition to the three basic trig functions we’ve already looked at (Sine, Cosine, Tangent), there are three other related functions. These are Secant, Cosecant, and Cotangent. These functions have similar meanings as the first three, in that they represent the ratios of various side lengths of a right angle triangle, and can be used…
Graphing: Standard Form of the Equation
Just a short explanation for what is meant by “standard form” of the equation of the line. We have been looking at line equations in the form of y=mx+b. However, you may be asked to express this in standard form, or as a standard form equation. Graphing standard form equations will give you the exact…
Which Measure of Central Tendency to Use? Mode, Mean, or Median?
A concept which may need a bit more explanation is: which average is appropriate for a given question? What is the best measure of central tendency? When would you use a median instead of a mean, or perhaps use a mode instead? For any data set, you can perform the analysis to come up with…
Person Curves
This post is just for fun, but it does go to show you that mathematics is more than just numbers and equations. You can actually do fun and cool things with it! What I’m about to show you probably won’t get you any bonus marks on a math test, nor will you likely be able…
Trigonometry – Tangent Definition
Be be successful in math, and especially trigonometry, you really need to understand the basic trig functions. The first of these functions I presented to you was sine, and then I followed that up with a closer look at cosine. Today, I want to talk about the third of the three basic trig functions –…
Why is X the Unknown?
Why does the letter “x” represent the unknown? Probably one of the most common variables you will ever run across in mathematics is “x.” You have undoubtedly seen it countless times, in math problems asking you to simply “solve for x,” or as one of several different letters in a multivariable equation. Using the letter…