Relevance
Through the unit we have picked up many things, to the dismay of some people thinking "Why are we even learning this?" Well, here are the reasons why, so sit back and enjoy.
Lines
A mag-lev trackFrom:
http://www.everydayminimalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Shanghai-Maglev-Tracks.jpg |
The focus of unit 2A was lines. These modest but useful parts of geometry can be used to design train tracks that don't run into each other and crash (Parallel lines), creating flight paths for planes that stay far away from other flying objects and avoid crashing (Skew lines), and intersections(Perpendicular lines).
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Spherical Geometry
How Gps worksFrom:
http://www.montana.edu/gps/understd.html |
There is also another way of using lines, not in Euclidean Geometry, but Spherical Geometry. This is useful for GPS, as the satellites orbiting the planet can detect the distance between them and you, find out where the other satellites distance "spheres" intersect with theirs', and pinpoint your location.
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