Math236 Week 2 Tutorial Exercises

Some comments for question 6. The hypocycloid based on a small wheel of radius r rolling
inside a circle of radius R creates a path in the plane given by


 

 
Rr
Rr
() = (R r) cos + r cos
, (R r) sin r sin

r
r
This is derived on page 97 the book Trigonometric Delights by Eli Maor, which is available at
the link:
http://press.princeton.edu/books/maor/chapter_7.pdf.
The derivative of this path is


 

 
Rr
Rr
0
() = (R r) sin sin
, cos cos

r
r
The speed of the path is
p
0 () 0 ()
and





(R r)
(R r)
0
0
2
() () = (R r) 2 + 2 sin() sin
2 cos() cos
r
r
 
R
.
= 4(R r)2 sin2
2r
This means that the speed is
  

R 
0
k ()k = 2(R r) sin
.
2r 
The cusps occur at the points corresponding to
R
= m, for some integer m.
2r
For example to get exactly three cusps, we would need them to occur at = 0, 2/3 and 4/3,
so having R three times r works.

0.5

-0.4

0.2

-0.2

0.4

-0.5

0.6

0.8

1.0

MATH 236 Tutorial Exercises

Paths, Complex numbers
Week 2, 2009
Ex. 1. Find (0) , (t) and (0) in each of the following cases of paths in R2 or R3 :

(a) : [0 , 1] R3 : (t) = sin 2t , cos 2t , 2t t2 ;

(b) : [0 , 4] R3 : (t) = et , cos t , sin t ;

(c) : [0 , 4] R2 : (t) = t2 , t3 4t ;

(d) : [0 , 6] R3 : (t) = sin 2t , log(1 + t) , t .

Ex. 2. Determine the velocity vector and the equation of the tangent line for each of the following paths,
at the specified value of t.
(a) r(t) = (6t , 3t2 , t3 ) , at t = 0
(b) (t) = (sin 3t , cos 3t , 2t3/2 ) , at t = 1
(c) (t) = (cos2 t , 3t t3 , t) , at t = 0

(d) (t) = (0 , 0 , t) at t = 1 .

Ex. 3. Find the path such that (0) = (0 , 5 , 1) and (t) = t , et , t2 .

Ex. 4. Suppose a particle follows the path (t) = et , et , cos t until it flies o on a tangent at t = 1 .
Where is it at t = 2 ?

Ex. 5. Suppose a particle following the path (t) = t2 , t3 4t flies o on a tangent at t = 2 .

Compute the position of the particle at t = 3 .
Ex. 6. Find an explicit form describing the path of a particle moving along a hypocycloid with (i) 5 cusps,
(ii) 6 cusps, (iii) 3 cusps. (iv) What can you say about a hypocycloid with only 2 cusps?
[In each case centre the hypocycloid at (0, 0) and let there be a cusp at the point (1, 0) .]
Ex. 7. Suppose that z0 C is fixed. A polynomial P (z) is said to be divisible by z z0 if there is
another polynomial Q(z) such that P (z) = (z z0 )Q(z) .
(a) Show that for every c C and k N , the polynomial c(z k z0k ) is divisible by z z0 .

(b) Consider the polynomial P (z) = a0 + a1 z + a2 z 2 + . . . + an z n , where a0 , a1 , a2 , . . . , an C

are arbitrary. Show that the polynomial P (z) P (z0 ) is divisible by z z0 .
(c) Deduce that P (z) is divisible by z z0 if P (z0 ) = 0 .

(d) Suppose that a polynomial P (z) of degree n vanishes at n distinct values z1 , z2 , . . . , zn C ,

so that P (z1 ) = P (z2 ) = . . . = P (zn ) = 0 .
Show that P (z) = c(z z1 )(z z2 ) . . . (z zn ) , where c C is a constant.

(e) Suppose that a polynomial P (z) of degree at most n vanishes at more than n distinct values.
Show that P (z) = 0 identically.
z

Ex. 8. Suppose that C is fixed and || < 1 . Show that |z| 1 if and only if
1.
1 z
Ex. 9. Suppose that z = x + iy, where x, y R .
Express each of the following in terms of x and y:
z + 1
z + i

(a) |z 1|3
(b)
(c)

.
z1
iz
1

Ex. 10. Suppose that c R and C with = 0 .

(a) Show that z + z + c = 0 is the equation of a straight line on the plane.
(b) What does the equation zz + z + z + c = 0 represent if ||2 c?

Ex. 11. Suppose that z, w C. Show that |z + w|2 + |z w|2 = 2 |z|2 + |w|2 .
Ex. 12. Find all the roots of the equation (z 8 1)(z 3 + 8) = 0.

Ex. 13. For each of the following, compute all the values and plot them on the plane:
(a) (1 + i)1/2

(b) (4)3/4

(c) (1 i)3/8 .