Transcript Lecture 2

Basic Trigonometry
Review for Engineers
PLUS!
Solving systems of equations
26-Mar-16
Instant Trig
• Trigonometry is math, so many people find it
scary
• It’s usually taught in a one-semester highschool course
• However, 95% of all the “trig” needed to solve
cool problems can be covered in 15 minutes
Laws of Trig you will Master
• Sum of internal angles = 180 (all triangles)
• Pythagorean theorem: a2+b2=c2 (right triangles)
• Definition of sin, cos, tan, arcsin, arccos, arctan
(right triangles)
• Law of Cosines (all triangles)
• Law of Sines (all triangles)
Angles add to 180°
• The angles of a triangle always add up to 180°
20°
44°
68°
44°
68°
+ 68°
180°
68°
30°
120°
20°
30°
+ 130°
180°
Right triangles
• Right triangles are a special case in trig
opposite
– A right triangle is one in which one of the angles is 90°
– Here’s a right triangle:
Here’s the angle
we are looking at
Here’s the
right angle
adjacent
• We call the longest side the hypotenuse
• We pick one of the other angles--not the right angle
• We name the other two sides relative to that angle
The Pythagorean Theorem
• If you square the length of the
two shorter sides and add
them, you get the square of
the length of the hypotenuse
• adj2 + opp2 = hyp2
• 32 + 42 = 52, or 9 + 16 = 25
• hyp = sqrt(adj2 + opp2)
• 5 = sqrt(9 + 16)
Defining sin, cos, tan
• also, a = c cos(q) , b = c sin(q)
q = arccos(a/ c) = arcsin(b/c) = arctan(b/a)
Example


The length of the shadow of a tree 22.02 m tall is
28.34 m. Find the angle of elevation of the sun.
Draw a sketch.
22.02 m
B

The angle of elevation of the sun is 37.85.
Rev.S08
8
28.34 m
http://faculty.valenciacc.edu/ashaw/
Click link to download other modules.
Example 2

The length of the shadow of a tree is 100 ft, and the
angle of elevation of the sun is 60 degrees. Find the
height of the tree
Draw a sketch.

The angle of elevation of the sun is 37.85.

Rev.S08
9
http://faculty.valenciacc.edu/ashaw/
Click link to download other modules.
Law of Cosines
• Use when you know an angle and two adacent
sides to find the 3rd side
• Use when you know three sides and want to
find an angle
Find x
Law of Sines
• Use when you know an angle and the
opposite side and want to find another angle
or side:
Find b and unknown side
Example of a narrative statement of a system of the equations:
The air-mail rate for letters to Europe is 45 cents per half-ounce and to
Africa is 65 cents per half-ounce. If Shirley paid $18.55 to send 35 halfounce letters abroad, how many did she send to Africa?
Example of an algebraic statement of the same system of the
equations:
A system of linear equations can be
solved four different ways
Substitution
Gaussian Elimination
Matrices
Graphing
and, #5 ... on the computer with Matlab
Example 1:
A total of $12,000 is invested in two funds paying 9%
and 11% simple interest. If the yearly interest is $1,180,
how much of the $12,000 is invested at each rate?
Before you work this problem, you must know the
definition of simple interest. Simple interest can be
calculated by multiplying the amount invested at the
interest rate.