SMK SULTAN ISMAIL, JOHOR BAHRU.

Name : Ainnatul Athirah Binti Mohd Yusof

Class : 5 Bijak
Teacher : Mrs. Haniza
Acknowledgement...3
Objective.....4
Introduction.....5
Part A...14
Part B....19
Part C...21
Further Exploration...25
Reflection...33
Conclusion.34
2 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
First of all, I would like to say Alhamdulillah, thanks to God for giving me the
strength and health to do this project work successfully and finish it on time.
Not forgotten, thanks to my parents for providing everything, such as laptop
and internet connection, which really was a big help to me in finishing this
project up as I could surf the net to find information and guidance for me to
make it work. Their advices, which I really needed to motivate myself in
completing this project. They also had been supporting and encouraging me to
complete this task soon as I could so that I would not procrastinate in doing so.
Then, I would like to thank my Additional Mathematics teacher, Mrs Hanizah,
who had been the one to guide me and the whole class throughout this
project. Even though I had some difficulties in finishing this task, I managed to
finish it well as she taught me patiently till I got her point.
I want to thank the media, for providing me countless informations on this
topic.
I would be lost if theres no internet at my home.
Thanks to my friends who had been always supporting me. Even though this
project had to be done individually, we discussed with each other on anything
that was related to this project via Twitter and text messages. We shared
ideas and methods to answer those asked questions correctly.
Last but not least, thanks to anyone who had been contributed either directly
or indirectly in completing this project work. Without them, I believed, this
project work could not be done in such a good way.
3 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
The aims of carrying out this project work are:
To apply and adapt a variety of problem-solving strategies to
solve problems.
To improve thinking skills.
To promote effective mathematical communication.
To develop mathematical knowledge through problem solving in a
way that increases students interest and confidence.
To use the language of mathematics to express mathematical
ideas precisely.
To provide learning environment that stimulates and enhances
effective learning.
To develop positive attitude towards mathematics.
4 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
History of Equations.
It is often claimed that the Babylonians (about 400 BC) were the first to solve quadratic
equations. This is an over simplification, for the Babylonians had no notion of 'equation'. What
they did develop was an algorithmic approach to solving problems which, in our terminology,
would give rise to a quadratic equation. The method is essentially one of completing the
square. However all Babylonian problems had answers which were positive (more accurately
unsigned) quantities since the usual answer was a length.
In about 300 BC Euclid developed a geometrical approach which, although later
mathematicians used it to solve quadratic equations, amounted to finding a length which in
our notation was the root of a quadratic equation. Euclid had no notion of equation,
coefficients etc. but worked with purely geometrical quantities.
Hindu mathematicians took the Babylonian methods further so that Brahmagupta (598-665
AD) gives an, almost modern, method which admits negative quantities. He also used
abbreviations for the unknown, usually the initial letter of a colour was used, and sometimes
several different unknowns occur in a single problem.
The Arabs did not know about the advances of the Hindus so they had neither negative
quantities nor abbreviations for their unknowns. However al-Khwarizmi (c 800) gave a
classification of different types of quadratics (although only numerical examples of each). The
different types arise since al-Khwarizmi had no zero or negatives. He has six chapters each
devoted to a different type of equation, the equations being made up of three types of
quantities namely: roots, squares of roots and numbers i.e. x, x
2
and numbers.
1. Squares equal to roots.
2. Squares equal to numbers.
3. Roots equal to numbers.
4. Squares and roots equal to numbers, e.g. x
2
+ 10x = 39.
5. Squares and numbers equal to roots, e.g. x
2
+ 21 = 10x.
6. Roots and numbers equal to squares, e.g. 3x + 4 = x
2
.
Al-Khwarizmi gives the rule for solving each type of equation, essentially the familiar quadratic
formula given for a numerical example in each case, and then a proof for each example which
is a geometricalcompleting the square.
Abraham bar Hiyya Ha-Nasi, often known by the Latin name Savasorda, is famed for his
book Liber embadorum published in 1145 which is the first book published in Europe to give
the complete solution of the quadratic equation.
A new phase of mathematics began in Italy around 1500. In 1494 the first edition of Summa
de arithmetica, geometrica, proportioni et proportionalita, now known as the Suma, appeared.
It was written by Luca Pacioli although it is quite hard to find the author's name on the
book, Fra Luca appearing in small print but not on the title page. In many ways the book is
more a summary of knowledge at the time and makes no major advances. The notation and
setting out of calculations is almost modern in style:
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6.p.R.10
18.m.R.90
____________________________
108.m.R.3240.p.R.3240.m.R.90
hoc est 78.
In our notation
(6 + 10)
(18 - 90) =
(108-3240 + 3240 - 900)
which is 78.
The last term in the answer 90 is an early misprint and should be 900 but the margin was too
narrow so the printer missed out the final 0!
Pacioli does not discuss cubic equations but does discuss quartics. He says that, in our
notation, x
4
= a + bx
2
can be solved by quadratic methods but x
4
+ ax
2
= b and x
4
+ a = bx
2
are impossible at the present state of science.
Scipione dal Ferro (1465-1526) held the Chair of Arithmetic and Geometry at the University of
Bologna and certainly must have met Pacioli who lectured at Bologna in 1501-2. Dal Ferro is
credited with solving cubic equations algebraically but the picture is somewhat more
complicated. The problem was to find the roots by adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing
and taking roots of expressions in the coefficients. We believe that dal Ferro could only solve
cubic equation of the form x
3
+ mx = n. In fact this is all that is required.
For, given the general cubic y
3
- by
2
+ cy - d = 0, put y = x + b/3 to get x
3
+ mx = n where
m = c - b
2
/3, n = d - bc/3 + 2b
3
/27.
However, without the Hindu's knowledge of negative numbers, dal Ferro would not have been
able to use his solution of the one case to solve all cubic equations. Remarkably, dal
Ferro solved this cubic equation around 1515 but kept his work a complete secret until just
before his death, in 1526, when he revealed his method to his student Antonio Fior.
Fior was a mediocre mathematician and far less good at keeping secrets than dal Ferro. Soon
rumours started to circulate in Bologna that the cubic equation had been solved.
Nicolo of Brescia, known as Tartaglia meaning 'the stammerer', prompted by the rumours
managed to solve equations of the form x
3
+ mx
2
= n and made no secret of his discovery.
Fior challenged Tartaglia to a public contest: the rules being that each gave the other 30
problems with 40 or 50 days in which to solve them, the winner being the one to solve most
but a small prize was also offered for each problem.
Tartaglia solved all Fior's problems in the space of 2 hours, for all the problems Fior had set
were of the form x
3
+ mx = n as he believed Tartaglia would be unable to solve this type.
However only 8 days before the problems were to be collected, Tartaglia had found the
general method for all types of cubics.
News of Tartaglia's victory reached Girolamo Cardan in Milan where he was preparing to
publish Practica Arithmeticae (1539). Cardan invited Tartaglia to visit him and, after much
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persuasion, made him divulge the secret of his solution of the cubic equation.
This Tartaglia did, having made Cardan promise to keep it secret until Tartaglia had published
it himself. Cardan did not keep his promise. In 1545 he published Ars Magna the first Latin
treatise on algebra.
Here, in modern notation, is Cardan's solution of x
3
+ mx = n.
Notice that (a - b)
3
+ 3ab(a - b) = a
3
- b
3
so if a and b satisfy 3ab = m and a
3
- b
3
= n then a - b is a solution of x
3
+ mx = n.
But now b = m/3a so a
3
- m
3
/27a
3
= n,
i.e. a
6
- na
3
- m
3
/27 = 0.
This is a quadratic equation in a
3
, so solve for a
3
using the usual formula for a quadratic.
Now a is found by taking cube roots and b can be found in a similar way (or using b=m/3a).
Then x = a - b is the solution to the cubic.
Cardan noticed something strange when he applied his formula to certain cubics. When
solving x
3
= 15x + 4 he obtained an expression involving -121. Cardan knew that you could
not take the square root of a negative number yet he also knew that x = 4 was a solution to
the equation. He wrote to Tartaglia on 4 August 1539 in an attempt to clear up the
difficulty. Tartaglia certainly did not understand. In Ars Magna Cardan gives a calculation with
'complex numbers' to solve a similar problem but he really did not understand his own
calculation which he says is as subtle as it is useless.
After Tartaglia had shown Cardan how to solve cubics, Cardan encouraged his own
student, Lodovico Ferrari, to examine quartic equations. Ferrari managed to solve the quartic
with perhaps the most elegant of all the methods that were found to solve this type of
problem. Cardan published all 20 cases of quartic equations in Ars Magna. Here, again in
modern notation, is Ferrari's solution of the case: x
4
+px
2
+ qx + r = 0. First complete the
square to obtain
x
4
+ 2px
2
+ p
2
= px
2
- qx - r + p
2
i.e.
(x
2
+ p)
2
= px
2
- qx - r + p
2
Now the clever bit. For any y we have
(x
2
+ p + y)
2
= px
2
- qx - r + p
2
+ 2y(x
2
+ p) + y
2
= (p + 2y)x
2
- qx + (p
2
- r + 2py + y
2
) (*)
Now the right hand side is a quadratic in x and we can choose y so that it is a perfect square.
This is done by making the discriminant zero, in this case
(-q)
2
-4(p + 2y)(p
2
- r + 2py + y
2
) = 0.
Rewrite this last equation as
(q
2
- 4p
3
+ 4 pr) + (-16p
2
+ 8r)y - 20 py
2
- 8y
3
= 0
to see that it is a cubic in y.
Now we know how to solve cubics, so solve for y. With this value of y the right hand side of (*)
is a perfect square so, taking the square root of both sides, we obtain a quadratic in x. Solve
this quadratic and we have the required solution to the quartic equation.
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The irreducible case of the cubic, namely the case where Cardan's formula leads to the square
root of negative numbers, was studied in detail by Rafael Bombelli in 1572 in his work Algebra.
In the years after Cardan's Ars Magna many mathematicians contributed to the solution of
cubic and quartic equations. Vite, Harriot, Tschirnhaus, Euler, Bezout and Descartes all
devised methods.Tschirnhaus's methods were extended by the Swedish mathematician E S
Bring near the end of the 18
th
Century.
Thomas Harriot made several contributions. One of the most elementary to us, yet showing a
marked improvement in understanding, was the observation that if x = b, x = c, x = d are
solutions of a cubic then the cubic is
(x - b)(x - c)(x - d) = 0.
Harriot also had a nice method for solving cubics. Consider the cubic
x
3
+ 3b
2
x = 2c
3
Put x = (e
2
- b
2
)/e. Then
e
6
- 2c
3
e
3
= b
6
which is a quadratic in e
3
, and so can be solved for e
3
to get
e
3
= c
3
+(b
6
+ c
6
).
However
e
3
(e
3
- 2c
3
) = b
6
so that b
6
/e
3
= -c
3
+(b
6
+ c
6
).
Now x = e - b
2
/e and both e and b
2
/e are cube roots of expressions given above.
Leibniz wrote a letter to Huygens in March 1673. In it he made many contributions to the
understanding of cubic equations. Perhaps the most striking is a direct verification of
the Cardan-Tartaglia formula. This Leibniz did by reconstructing the cubic from its three roots
(as given by the formula) as Harriot claimed in general. Nobody before Leibniz seems to have
thought of this direct method of verification. It was the first true algebraic proof of the
formula, all previous proofs being geometrical in nature.
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Application of Equations.
We now fastforward 1000 years to the Ancient Greeks and see what they made of quadratic
equations. The Greeks were superb mathematicians and discovered much of the mathematics
we still use today. One of the equations they were interested in solving was the (simple)
quadratic equation:

They knew that this equation had a solution. In fact it is the length of the hypotenuse of a right
angled triangle which had sides of length one.
It follows from Pythagoras theorem that if a right-angled triangle has shorter sides and
and hypotenuse then

Putting and then . Thus
So, what is in this case? Or, to ask the question that the Greeks asked, what sort of number
is it? The reason that this mattered lay in the Greeks sense of proportion. They believed that
all numbers were in proportion with each other. To be precise, this meant that all numbers
were fractions of the form where and are whole numbers. Numbers like 1/2, 3/4 and
355/113 are all examples of fractions. It was natural to expect that was also a fraction. The
huge surprise was that it isnt. In fact

where the dots mean that the decimal expansion of continues to infinity without any
discernible pattern. (We will meet this situation again later when we learn about chaos.)
was the first irrational number (that is, a number which is not a fraction, or rational), to be
recognised as such. Other examples include , , and in fact "most" numbers. It took until
9 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
the 19th century before we had a good way of thinking about these numbers. The discovery
that was not a rational number caused both great excitement (100 oxen were sacrificed as
a result) and great shock, with the discoverer having to commit suicide. (Let this be an awful
warning to the mathematically keen!) At this point the Greeks gave up algebra and turned to
geometry.
Far from being an obscure number, we meet regularly: whenever we use a piece of A4
paper. In Europe, paper sizes are measured in A sizes, with A0 being the largest with an area
of . The A sizes have a special relationship between them. If we now do a bit of origami,
taking a sheet of A1 paper and then folding it in half (along its longest side), we get A2 paper.
Folding it in half again gives A3, and again gives A4 etc. However, the paper is designed so
that the proportions of each of the A sizes is the same - that is, each piece of paper has the
same shape.
We can pose the question of what proportion this is. Start with a piece of paper with
sides xand y with x the longest side. Now divide this in two to give another piece of paper with
sidesy and x/2 with now y being the longest side. This is illustrated to the right.
The proportions of the first piece of paper are and those of the second are
or . We want these two proportions to be equal. This means that

or

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Another quadratic equation! Fortunately it's one we have already met. Solving it we find that

This result is easy for you to check. Just take a sheet of A4 (or A3 or A5) paper and measure
the sides. We can also work out the size of each sheet. The area of a piece of A0 paper is
given by

But we know that so we have another quadratic equation for the longest side of
A0, given by

This means that the longest side of A is given by (why?) and that of A
by . Check these on your own sheets of paper.
Paper used in the United States, called foolscap, has a different proportion. To see why, we
return to the Greeks and another quadratic equation. Having caused such grief, the quadratic
equation redeems itself in the search for the perfect proportions: a search that continues
today in the design of film sets, and can be seen in many aspects of nature.
Lets start with a rectangle, and then remove a square from it with the same side length as
the shortest side of the rectangle. If the longest side of the rectangle has length 1 and the
shortest side has length , then the square has sides of length . Removing it from the
rectangle gives a smaller rectangle with longest side and smallest side . So far, so
abstract. However, the Greeks believed that the rectangle which had the most aesthetic
proportions (the so called Golden Rectangle) was that for which the large and the small
11 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
rectangles constructed above have the same proportions. For this to be possible we must
have

This is yet another quadratic equation: a very important one that comes up in all sort of
applications. It has the (positive) solution

The number is called the golden ratio and is often denoted by the Greek letter .
The Golden Rectangle can be seen in the shape of windows, especially on Georgian houses.
More recently, the Golden Ratio can also be found as the "perfect shape" for photographs and
film images. The quadratic equation also arises in studies of the populations of
rabbits and in the pattern in which the seeds of sunflowers and the leaves on the stems of
plants are arranged. These are all linked with the Golden ratio through the Fibonacci
sequence which is given by

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Sunflower seeds, arranged using Fibonacci
numbers
The Parthenon, embodying the Golden
Ratio
In this sequence each term is the sum of the previous two terms. Fibonacci discovered it in the
15th century in an attempt to predict the future population of rabbits. If you take the ratio of
each term to the one after it, you get the sequence of numbers

and these numbers get closer and closer to (you guessed it) the Golden Ratio .
By finding both of the roots of the above quadratic equation we can actually find a formula for
the nth term in the Fibonacci sequence. If is the th such number with and
then is given by the formula

13 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
14 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
PART A.
(a) Equation 1 : Axis of symmetry, x = 0.
Method 1: General Form ,with c = 175
General Form
175
175 ,
2
2
+ +
+ +
bx ax
c c bx ax y
Passing through (50,100),
) 1 ( ........ 75 50 2500
175 ) 50 ( ) 50 ( 100
2
+
+ +
b a
b a
Passing through (-50,100),
03 . 0
75 2500
. 0
0 100
) 2 ( .......... 75 50 2500
175 ) 50 ( ) 50 ( 100
2

+ +
a
a
b
b
b a
b a
Quadratic Equation
175 03 . 0
2
+ x y
15 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r
(0, 175)
(50, 100)
(-50,
100)

y
x
0
Equation 2 : Axis of symmetry, x = 50.
Method 1: General Form, with c =100


General Form
100
100 ,
2
2
+ +
+ +
bx ax
c c bx ax y
Passing through (50,175),
150 100 5000
) 1 ( ........ 75 50 2500
100 ) 50 ( ) 50 ( 175
2
+
+
+ +
b a
b a
b a
Passing through (100,100),
3
50
150
75 50 75
75 50 ) 03 . 0 ( 2500
03 . 0
150 5000
) 2 ( .......... 0 100 10000
100 ) 100 ( ) 100 ( 100
2

+
+


+
+ +
b
b
b
a
a
b a
b a
Quadratic Equation
100 3 03 . 0
2
+ + x x y
Equation 3 : Axis of symmetry, x = 0.
Method 1: General Form, with c =75
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0 x
y
(100, 100) (0, 100)

(50, 175)

y
x
0
(0, 75)
(50, 0) (-50, 0)

General Form
75
75 ,
2
2
+ +
+ +
bx ax
c c bx ax y
Passing through (-50,0) ,
) 1 ( ........ 75 50 2500
75 ) 50 ( ) 50 ( 0
2

+ +
b a
b a
Passing through (50,0) ,
Quadratic Equation
75 03 . 0
2
+ x y
17 | A d d i t i o n a l M a t h e ma t i c s P r o j e c t Wo r k 2 / 2 0 1 2 J o h o r

3
150 50
75 50 ) 03 . 0 ( 2500
03 . 0
150 5000
) 2 ( .......... 75 50 2500
75 ) 50 ( ) 50 ( 0
2

+
+ +
b
b
b
a
a
b a
b a
(b) M ethod 1
Area of region A = dx x

+
50
50
2
75 03 . 0

2
50
50
3
5000
75
3
03 . 0
cm
x
x

1
]
1

Area of region B = 100 x 100
= 10000 cm
2

Total surface area = 10 000 + 5 000
= 15 000 cm
2

Method 2
(Refer to Equation 2)
Area = dx x x

+ +
100
0
2
) 100 3 03 . 0 (
2
100
0
2 3
15000
100
2
3
3
03 . 0
cm
x x

1
]
1

+ +
Region A
Region
B
(Refer to Equation 3)
PART B.
(a) Structure 1
Area ,


,
_

+
50
0
2
1
75
100
3
2 dx x A

2
2
3
50
0
3
50
0
3
5 . 0
5000
) 50 ( 75
100
50
2
75
100
2
75
3 100
3
2
m
cm
x
x
x
x

1
]
1

+
1
]
1

+
1
]
1

,
_

Total Area = 1x1 + 0.5
= 1.5 m
3
Total Volume= 1.5 x 0.13
= 0.195 m
3
Cost = 0.195 x RM 960
= RM 187.20
Structure 2
Area 5 . 0 75 . 0 2
2
1
x x x
= 0.1875 m
2
Total Area = 0.1875 + 1 m
2
= 1.1875 m
2
Total Volume= 1.1875 x 0.13
= 0.154375 m
3
Cost = 0.154375 x RM 960
= RM 148.20
Structure 3
Area 75 . 0 ) 1 5 . 0 (
2
1
x x +
= 0.5625 m
2
Total Area = 0.1875 + 1 m
2
= 1.5625 m
2
Total Volume= 1.5625 x 0.13
= 0.203125 m
3
Cost = 0.203125 x RM 960
= RM 195.00
Structure 4
eArea 75 . 0 ) 1 25 . 0 (
2
1
+
= 0.46875 m
2
Total Area = 0.46875+ 1 m
2
= 1.46875
m
2
Total Volume = 1.46875 x 0.13
= 0.190375 m
3
Cost = 0.190375 x RM 960
= RM 183.30
Answer: Structure 2
(b) Structure 2. It consumes the
lowest cost.
PART C.
(a)
Area of triangle ACE
3 1600
) 6400 (
4
3
60 sin ) 80 )( 80 (
2
1
0

Area of triangle ABD

2
0
4
3
60 sin ) )( (
2
1
x
x x

Area of triangle BCF

( )
2
2
2
0
4
3
3 40 3 1600
160 6400
4
3
) 80 (
4
3
60 sin ) 80 )( 80 (
2
1
x x
x x
x
x x
+
+


x x
x x x
x x x y
3 40
2
3
4
3
3 40 3 1600
4
3
3 1600
4
3
3 40 3 1600
4
3
3 1600
2
2 2
2 2
+
+

,
_

+
cm
2
(b)
3 40
2
3
3 40
2
3
2
+
+
x
x
y
x x y
Y =
x
y
, X =
x
, m =
2
3
, c = 3 40
x
1 2 3 4 5
y
68.42 135.10 200.05 263.27 324.76
x
y
68.42 67.55 66.68 65.82 64.95
*Refer the graph paper next page.
From the graph,
2
75 . 354
5 . 64
5 . 5
5 . 5
cm y
y
x

(c) x x y 3 40
2
3
2
+
Method 1: Differentiation

( )
2
2
max
2
2
2
65 . 1385
28 . 2771 64 . 1385
) 40 )( 3 ( 40 40
2
3
0 , 3
. 40
3 40 3
, 0
3 40 3
3 40
2
3
cm
y
dx
y d
x
x
dx
dy
x
dx
dy
x x y

+
+
<

+
+
Method 2: Completing the
square
( )
[ ]
( ) [ ]
2
max
2
2
2 2 2
2
2
64 . 1385 3 800
40
3 800 ) 40 (
2
3
1600 40
2
3
) 40 ( ) 40 ( 80
2
3
80
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Conics link quadratic equations to the stars
The Greeks were also very interested in the shape of cones. The picture above shows a typical
cone.
Half of the cone can be visualised as the spread of light coming from a torch. Now, if you shine
a torch onto a flat surface such as a wall then you will see various shapes as you move the
torch around. These shapes are called conic sections and are the curves that you obtain if you
take a slice through a cone at various different angles. Precisely these curves were studied by
the Greeks, and they recognised that there were basically four types of conic section. If you
take a horizontal section through the cone then you get a circle. A section at a small angle to
the horizontal gives you an ellipse. If you take a vertical section then you get a hyperbola and
if you take a section parallel to one side of the cone then you get a parabola. These curves are
illustrated below.
A cross-section of a cone can be a
circle ...
... an ellipse ...
... a parabola ...
... or a hyperbola.
Conic sections come into our story because each of them is described by a quadratic equation.
In particular, if represents a point on each curve, then a quadratic equation links and
. We have:
The circle: ;
The ellipse: ;
The hyperbola: ;
The parabola:
These curves were known and studied since the Greeks, but apart from the circle they did not
seem to have any practical application. However, as we shall see in the next issue of Plus, a
link between quadratic equations and conics, coupled with a mighty lucky fluke, led to an
understanding of the way that the universe worked, and in the 16th century the time came for
conics to change the world.
Problem solving involving quadratic equations.
In the following examples, I will show how a word problem can be solved using a quadratic
equation.
Solving Right Triangles Using the Pythagorean Theorem.
Recall that for a right triangle the sum of the squares of the legs is equal to the square of the
Hypotenuse:
Example 1:
Suppose that one leg of a right triangle is 12 inches while the hypotenuse is inches..
Find the length of the other leg.
Solution
Let x be the length of the other leg. Substituting into the Pythagorean theorem we have
.
Since the right side is equal to This equation simplifies to
or .
This means that x is 4 or -4.
Only 4 can be a length of the side of a triangle; so the other leg is 4 inches long.
Example 2
Suppose that one leg of a right triangle is 1 more than the other leg; and the hypotenuse is 1
less than 2 times the shorter leg. Find the lengths of all the sides.
Solution
Let one side have length x. then the other side can be expressed as x + 1 (the longer leg). The
hypotenuse would then be expressed as 2x - 1. So by the Pythagorean theorem we have the
equation
.
We need to solve this equation for x. We must first expand (multiply) all of the terms:
so we have the equation
.
Combining like terms and setting one side to zero we have
.
Factoring the right hand side gives
If we set each of these factors equal to zero we get two solutions: x = 0 or x = 3. Only 3 can
be the length of a side of a triangle. So the lengths are : 3, 4, and 5.
Number problems.
Recall that if x is an integer, then the next consecutive integer is x + 1. For example, the next
consecutive integer after 7 is 7 +1 = 8.
If x is an even integer the next consecutive even integer would be x + 2. For example, the
next consecutive even integer after -6 is -6 + 2 = -4.
If x is and odd integer the next consecutive odd integer would be x + 2 as well. For example,
the next consecutive odd integer after -9 is -9 + 2 = -7.
Example 3:
Find two positive consecutive odd integers whose product is 99.
Solution
Let x be the first integer. Then the next odd integer is x + 2. So we have
x(x+2) = 99.
To solve this equation first we distribute and then set one side to zero. We have
Factoring the left side gives
(x + 11)(x - 9) = 0.
So the solutions are x = -11 or x = 9. Since we are looking for positive integers, the answers
are 9 and 11.
Area Problems.
Recall the following formulas for a rectangle:
Perimeter: P = 2L + 2 W
Area: A = LW
Example 4
The width of a rectangle is 16 feet less than 3 times the length. If the area is 35 square feet,
find the dimensions of the rectangle.
Solution
Let x be the length because the width is expressed in terms of the length. So the length is 3x -
16. The total area is 35 square feet so we have the equation
35 = x(3x -16).
To solve we first distribute:
35 = 3x
2
- 16x
then set the left side to zero:
.
Factoring gives
0 = (3x +5)(x -7).
Only the second factor will give a positive solution, so the answer is 7. The dimensions of the
rectangle are: Length: 7 feet width: 5 feet.
Finding areas by integration
Integration can be used to calculate areas. In simple cases, the area is given by a single
definite
integral. But sometimes the integral gives a negative answer which is minus the area, and in
more complicated cases the correct answer can be obtained only by splitting the area into
several parts and adding or subtracting the appropriate integrals.
Whenever we are calculating area in a given interval, we are using definite integration. Lets
try to find the area under a function for a given interval.
(1) Integrate from [-2, 2].
Step 1: Set up the integral.
Step 2: Find the Integral.
*Note: We don't have to add a "+C" at the end because it will cancel out finding the area anyway.
Step 3: Integrate from the given interval, [-2,2].
The area of the curve to the x axis from -2 to 2 is
32
3 units squared.
On the graph, the red below the parabola is the area and the dotted line is the integral
function. Notice that the integral function is cubic and the original function is quadratic. The
integral will always be a degree higher than the original function. Looking at the graph, there
is a geometric relationship between the original function and the integral function. We can see
at x = -2 the integral function has a y value of a little under -5, and at x = 2 the integral has a
y value of a little over 5. The difference of 5.3 and -5.3 gives us an area of
32
3, which is a little
over 10.
When taking the definite integral over an interval, sometimes we will get negative area
because the graph interprets area above the x axis as positive area and below the x axis as
negative area.
After spending countless hours, days and night to finish this project and also
sacrificing my time for video games and stuffs during this mid-year school break,
there are several things that I can say. Im going to express it through words anyways.
After doing some researches, answering the given questions, drawing the
graphs and some problem solving, I saw that the usage of quadratic
equation is important in daily life. It is not just widely used in architecture such
as determining the area of a sculpture with curve(s) but we use quadratic
equation in our daily life as well. To be related, determining the area is
important as it can give the exact amount of the needed cost.
But, what is the use of quadratic equation in daily life of normal people like us?
In reality most people are not going to use the quadratic equation in daily life.
Having a firm understanding of the quadratic equation as with most maths
helps increasing logical thinking, critical thinking, and number sense.
We use quadratic equations to determine how to shape the mirror of, say a car
headlight, that is familiar, and where to put the light. If the light is at the
focus, as it should be, all light from the bulb will be reflected straight out.
As a conclusion, quadratic equation is a daily life essentiality. If there is no
quadratic equation, architect wont be able to create such perfect buildings,
and light from bulbs in front of a car cannot shine brilliantly.