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In mathematics, sine and cosine are trigonometric functions of an angle.The sine and cosine of an acute angle are defined in the context of a right triangle: for the specified angle, its sine is the ratio of the length of the side that is opposite that angle to the length of the longest side of the triangle (the hypotenuse), and the cosine is the ratio of the length of the adjacent leg to that ...
In trigonometry, the law of sines, sine law, sine formula, or sine rule is an equation relating the lengths of the sides of any triangle to the sines of its angles.According to the law, = = =, where a, b, and c are the lengths of the sides of a triangle, and α, β, and γ are the opposite angles (see figure 2), while R is the radius of the triangle's circumcircle.
Trigonometry was still so little known in 16th-century northern Europe that Nicolaus Copernicus devoted two chapters of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium to explain its basic concepts. Driven by the demands of navigation and the growing need for accurate maps of large geographic areas, trigonometry grew into a major branch of mathematics. [27]
The oldest definitions of trigonometric functions, related to right-angle triangles, define them only for acute angles. To extend the sine and cosine functions to functions whose domain is the whole real line , geometrical definitions using the standard unit circle (i.e., a circle with radius 1 unit) are often used; then the domain of the other ...
This geometric argument relies on definitions of arc length and area, which act as assumptions, so it is rather a condition imposed in construction of trigonometric functions than a provable property. [2] For the sine function, we can handle other values. If θ > π /2, then θ > 1. But sin θ ≤ 1 (because of the Pythagorean identity), so sin ...
In mathematics, some functions or groups of functions are important enough to deserve their own names. This is a listing of articles which explain some of these functions in more detail. This is a listing of articles which explain some of these functions in more detail.
A great many professional mathematicians take no interest in a definition of mathematics, or consider it undefinable. There is not even consensus on whether mathematics is an art or a science. Some just say, "mathematics is what mathematicians do". [166] [167] A common approach is to define mathematics by its object of study. [168] [169] [170 ...
This page will attempt to list examples in mathematics. To qualify for inclusion, an article should be about a mathematical object with a fair amount of concreteness. Usually a definition of an abstract concept, a theorem, or a proof would not be an "example" as the term should be understood here (an elegant proof of an isolated but particularly striking fact, as opposed to a proof of a ...