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Cartesian coordinate system with a circle of radius 2 centered at the origin marked in red. The equation of a circle is (x − a) 2 + (y − b) 2 = r 2 where a and b are the coordinates of the center (a, b) and r is the radius. In Cartesian geometry, equations are used to describe geometric figures.
Cartesian coordinate system with a circle of radius 2 centered at the origin marked in red. The equation of a circle is (x − a) 2 + (y − b) 2 = r 2 where a and b are the coordinates of the center (a, b) and r is the radius.
A point P has coordinates (x, y) with respect to the original system and coordinates (x′, y′) with respect to the new system. [1] In the new coordinate system, the point P will appear to have been rotated in the opposite direction, that is, clockwise through the angle . A rotation of axes in more than two dimensions is defined similarly.
The phrase "linear equation" takes its origin in this correspondence between lines and equations: a linear equation in two variables is an equation whose solutions form a line. If b ≠ 0 , the line is the graph of the function of x that has been defined in the preceding section.
The origin of a Cartesian coordinate system. In mathematics, the origin of a Euclidean space is a special point, usually denoted by the letter O, used as a fixed point of reference for the geometry of the surrounding space. In physical problems, the choice of origin is often arbitrary, meaning any choice of origin will ultimately give the same ...
This means that the origin O' of the new coordinate system has coordinates (h, k) in the original system. The positive x' and y' directions are taken to be the same as the positive x and y directions. A point P has coordinates (x, y) with respect to the original system and coordinates (x', y') with respect to the new system, where
Because PQ has length y 1, OQ length x 1, and OP has length 1 as a radius on the unit circle, sin(t) = y 1 and cos(t) = x 1. Having established these equivalences, take another radius OR from the origin to a point R(−x 1,y 1) on the circle such that the same angle t is formed with the negative arm of the x-axis.
In 1637, René Descartes "invented the convention of representing unknowns in equations by x, y, and z, and knowns by a, b, and c". [14] Contrarily to Viète's convention, Descartes' is still commonly in use. The history of the letter x in math was discussed in an 1887 Scientific American article. [15]