Infinity and right triangles

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Reply Fri 21 May, 2010 08:21 pm
Pictures would help this thread, but I don't have paint on my computer to work with. :sarcastic:
I was introduced today to special right triangles- 30.60.90 and 45.45.90

A while ago I gave a triangle(?) sides dealing with infinity.
The triangle I created is a right triangle. One leg of the triangle is ∞ in length. The other leg's length is 1/∞ (or 0.∞). With a simple Pythagorean theorem I found the hypotenuse to be ∞.∞ in length. I wasn't thinking about the angles before, but with one leg of the triangle being so infinitely small, the angle must be very small as well, small but not infinitely small because the triangle is right and the angles beside the right angle must add up to 90. The angle opposite the infinitely small side is, I guess, 0.(lots of 0s)1 and the angle opposite the ∞ leg must be 89.9 repeating.

Anyways, today I learned about these special right triangles and will now add infinity to them and their specialness.

First I'll play with the 30.60.90 triangle.
Quick calculations messes with the triangle. The hypotenuse is 2*∞, which is ∞ [when starting out with ∞ as the short leg***]. The long leg is ∞*the square root of 3. Might be my faulty workings with ∞; I'll come back to this one later.

Now for the 45.45.90, isosceles!

The converse of the Isosceles Triangles Base Angles Theorem states that
Quote:
If two angles of a triangle are congruent, then sides opposite those angles are congruent. (1)
For my experiment the legs will be ∞ in length. The hypotenuse of this 45.45.90 must be ∞*the square root of 2.

-------------thread questions------------
Can be about my use of infinity, infinity in general (this is only partly an infinity thread), multiplication/addition/subtraction/division and infinity, and anything else infinite. We can also discuss the triangles I've presented, or, if you have the time and patience, other shapes and infinity.

I'd like to read your thoughts. Recreational math is fun.

(1) Proofs involving Isosceles triangles, theorems, examples and practice proofs

For more on special triangles:
Special Triangles
Special Right Triangles (with worked solutions & videos)
 
Reconstructo
 
Reply Fri 21 May, 2010 08:46 pm
@mister kitten,
I was looking for Cusanus's infinite triangles, but could only find his other brilliant geometrical conceptions. If you can find it somewhere, you would probably like it. I read it in Coppleston. Here's a link if you are curious: Nicholas of Cusa and the Infinite
 
ughaibu
 
Reply Sat 22 May, 2010 12:44 am
@mister kitten,
mister kitten;167150 wrote:
For more on special triangles:
You seem to be missing the golden triangle: 72-72-36.
 
mister kitten
 
Reply Sat 22 May, 2010 08:08 am
@ughaibu,
ughaibu;167210 wrote:
You seem to be missing the golden triangle: 72-72-36.

I am ignorant of that triangle. Could you explain?
 
ughaibu
 
Reply Sat 22 May, 2010 12:57 pm
@mister kitten,
mister kitten;167288 wrote:
I am ignorant of that triangle. Could you explain?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Golden_triangle_%28math%29.svg/600px-Golden_triangle_%28math%29.svg.png
 
 

 
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