PROPERTIES of circles

Circles having equal radii are congruent. Circles having different radii are similar. The central angle which intercepts an arc doubles of any inscribed angle that intercepts the same arc. The radius perpendicular to a chord bisects the chord. The chords equidistant from the center are equal in length. A tangent to a circle is at right angles to the radius at the point of contact. Two tangents drawn to a circle from a point outside are equal in length. The angle subtended at the center of a circle by its circumference is equal to four right angles. Circumference of two different circles is proportional to their corresponding radii. Arcs of the same circle are proportional to their corresponding angles. Radii of the same circle or the equal circles are equal. Equal chords have equal circumferences. The diameter of a circle is the longest chord. Circle which have equal radii are equal. Equal circles have equal circumference.

Some Historic Highlights

Some highlights in the history of the circle are: - 1700 BC The Rhind papyrus gives a method to find the area of a circular field. The result corresponds to 256/81 (3.16049...) as an approximate value of . - 300 BC Book 3 of Euclid's Elements deals with the properties of circles. - In Plato's Seventh Letter there is a detailed definition and explanation of the circle. Plato explains the perfect circle, and how it is different from any drawing, words, definition or explanation. - 1880 Lindemann proves that is transcendental, effectively settling the millennia-old problem of squaring the circle.

Submitted By: Sofia G. Ordillano 6-St.Agnes

Definition
A circle is a simple shape of Euclidean geometry consisting of the set of points in a plane that are a given distance from a given point, the centre. The distance between any of the points and the centre is called the radius. Circles are simple closed curves which divide the plane into two regions: an interior and an exterior. In everyday use, the term "circle" may be used interchangeably to refer to either the boundary of the figure, or to the whole figure including its interior; in strict technical usage, the circle is the former and the latter is called a disk. A circle is a special ellipse in which the two foci are coincident and the eccentricity is 0. Circles are conic sections attained when a right circular cone is intersected by a plane perpendicular to the axis of the cone.

History
The word "circle" derives from the Greek, kirkos "a circle," from the base ker- which means to turn or bend. The origins of the words "circus" and "circuit" are closely related. The circle has been known since before the beginning of recorded history. Natural circles would have been observed, such as the Moon, Sun, and a short plant stalk blowing in the wind on sand, which forms a circle shape in the sand. The circle is the basis for the wheel, which, with related inventions such as gears, makes much of modern civilization possible. In mathematics, the study of the circle has helped inspire the development of geometry, astronomy, and calculus. Early science, particularly geometry and astrology and astronomy, was connected to the divine for most medieval scholars, and many believed that there was something intrinsically "divine" or "perfect" that could be found in circles.

The Unit Circle

In mathematics, a unit circle is a circle with a radius of one. Frequently, especially in trigonometry, "the" unit circle is the circle of radius one centered at the origin (0, 0) in the Cartesian in the Euclidean plane.

The Mysterious Variable:

(sometimes written pi) is a mathematical constant that is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter. is approximately equal to 3.14 in the usual decimal notation. Many formulae in mathematics, science, and engineering involve , which makes it one of the most important mathematical constants. For instance, the area of a circle is equal to times the square of the radius of the circle. is an irrational number, which means that its value cannot be expressed exactly as a fraction having integers in both the numerator and denominator. Consequently, its decimal representation never ends and never repeats. is also a transcendental number, which implies, among other things, that no finite sequence of algebraic operations on integers (powers, roots, sums, etc.) can render its value; proving this fact was a significant mathematical achievement of the 19th century.

Parts of a Circle

The radius of the circle is a straight line drawn from the center to the boundary line or the circumference. The plural of the word radius is radii. The diameter is the line crossing the circle and passing through the center. It is the twice of the length of the radius. The circumference of a circle is the boundary line or the perimeter of the circle. The chord is a straight line joining two points on the circumference points of a circle. The diameter is a special kind of the chord passing through the center.

An arc is a part of the circumference between two points or a continuous piece of a circle. The shorter arc between and is called the minor arc . The longer arc between and is called the major arc . A semi-circle is an arc which is half of the circumference. A tangent is a straight line which touches the circle. It does not cut the circumference. The point at which it touches, is called the point of contact.