Circle Circles

Circle
Cartesian equation:
x2 + y2 = a2
or parametrically:
x = a cos(t), y = a sin(t)
Polar equation:
r=a
Click below to see one of the Associated curves.
Definitions of the Associated curves Evolute
Involute 1 Involute 2
Inverse curve wrt origin Inverse wrt another circle
Pedal curve wrt origin Pedal wrt another point
Negative pedal curve wrt origin Negative pedal wrt another point
Caustic wrt horizontal rays Caustic curve wrt another point
If your browser can handle JAVA code, click HERE to experiment interactively with this curve and its
associated curves.
The study of the circle goes back beyond recorded history. The invention of the wheel is a fundamental
discovery of properties of a circle.
The greeks considered the Egyptians as the inventors of geometry. The scribe Ahmes, the author of the
Rhind papyrus, gives a rule for determining the area of a circle which corresponds to π = 256/81 or
approximately 3.16.
The first theorems relating to circles are attributed to Thales around 650 BC. Book III of Euclid's Elements
deals with properties of circles and problems of inscribing and escribing polygons.
One of the problems of Greek mathematics was the problem of finding a square with the same area as a
given circle. Several of the 'famous curves' in this stack were first studied in an attempt to solve this
problem. Anaxagoras in 450 BC is the first recored mathematician to study this problem.
The problem of finding the area of a circle led to integration. For the circle with formula given above the
area is πa2 and the length of the curve is 2πa.
The pedal of a circle is a cardioid if the pedal point is taken on the circumference and is a limacon if the
pedal point is not on the circumference.
The caustic of a circle with radiant point on the circumference is a cardioid, while if the rays are parallel
then the caustic is a nephroid.
Apollonius, in about 240 BC, showed effectively that the bipolar equation r = kr' represents a system of
coaxial circles as k varies. In terms of bipolar equations mr2 + nr'2 = c2 represents a circle whose centre
divides the line segment between the two fixed points of the system in the ratio n to m.
of Circles
In honor of a very special Pi Day, enjoy this map that explores the human-made and natural structures
that come closest to a perfect circle
By Esri , Li Zhou
SMITHSONIAN.COM
MARCH 12, 2015

With apologies to 1990s alt-rock fans, a perfect circle cannot exist outside the realm of mathematics.
From subatomic particles to carefully built structures, nothing in the physical world passes the perfect
circle test, where every point on the circumference is exactly equidistant from the circle’s center. That
said, some notable natural forms and human-made buildings get pretty close. Occurring either by
happenstance or designed to pay homage to the shape that the Greek scholar Proclus called "the first,
simplest and most perfect form,” these sites highlight the singular symmetry and symbolism the circle
embodies.
A fascination and interest in circles predates recorded history, with many ancient cultures finding
approximations for pi—the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter—thousands of years before
mathematicians gave it that name with the tasty homophone.
Because of their symmetry, circles were seen as representations of the “divine” and “natural balance” in
ancient Greece. Later on, the shape would become a vital foundation for the wheel and other simple
machines.
A focus on circles is evident among structures built throughout history. Although the meaning of its
design is still being deciphered, Gobekli Tepe, a series of stone circles in Turkey, is the oldest known
temple, built 6,000 years prior to Stonehenge (another famous circle). The shape marks many more
important gathering places used by diverse cultures as centers of worship, governance and even
spectacle.
Roman amphitheaters, including the Colosseum, for example, were designed as circles or ellipses to
place the focus on one main event, such as gladiatorial battles. St. Peter’s Piazza, the square leading up
to the main Vatican building, features two semicircles that enclose the space, meant to personify “the
motherly arms of the church” welcoming people into the area.
In addition to the physical purposes they serve, circular structures have also been built to act as more
abstract symbols. In Beijing, the Temple of Heaven is a conical structure that sits adjacent to a three-
tiered circular marble altar used for imperial sacrifices during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The circle
represented the heavens, while a neighboring square depicted the Earth. The design of the Indian
Parliament’s Central Hall building is circular to represent the Ashoka Chakra, a Hindu symbol that literally
translates to “wheel of the law,” which is also on the country’s flag.
In a case of modern practicality, the Large Hadron Collider underneath the Switzerland-France border
takes the form of a 16.7-mile-long circular tunnel. The round shape forces particles to constantly change
direction and accelerate—colliding with great enough force to shake loose new types of matter.
In nature, the appearances of major circular areas are often thought to offer some secondary meaning.
Crop circles are intricate, bewildering patterns that have long confounded people, even igniting
speculation about extraterrestrial activity, although more reasonable explanations cite wind patterns and
human interference. Fairy circles in Africa embody a similar degree of mystery. Bare areas of earth
surrounded by circular rings of grass, fairy circles’ origins and distribution remain unexplained, with
some terming them the “footprints of the Gods.”
Pi
In 1706 a little-known mathematics teacher named William Jones first used a symbol to represent the
platonic concept of pi, an ideal that in numerical terms can be approached, but never reached.
Patricia Rothman | Published in History Today Volume 59 Issue 7 July 2009
William Jones, mathematician from Wales, 1740
William Jones, mathematician from Wales, 1740
The history of the constant ratio of the circumference to the diameter of any circle is as old as man's
desire to measure; whereas the symbol for this ratio known today as π (pi) dates from the early 18th
century. Before this the ratio had been awkwardly referred to in medieval Latin as: quantitas in quam
cum multiflicetur diameter, proveniet circumferencia (the quantity which, when the diameter is
multiplied by it, yields the circumference).
It is widely believed that the great Swiss-born mathematician Leonhard Euler (1707-83) introduced the
symbol π into common use. In fact it was first used in print in its modern sense in 1706 a year before
Euler's birth by a self-taught mathematics teacher William Jones (1675-1749) in his second book
Synopsis Palmariorum Matheseos, or A New Introduction to the Mathematics based on his teaching
notes.
Before the appearance of the symbol π, approximations such as 22/7 and 355/113 had also been used to
express the ratio, which may have given the impression that it was a rational number. Though he did not
prove it, Jones believed that π was an irrational number: an infinite, non-repeating sequence of digits
that could never totally be expressed in numerical form. In Synopsis he wrote: '... the exact proportion
between the diameter and the circumference can never be expressed in numbers...'. Consequently, a
symbol was required to represent an ideal that can be approached but never reached. For this Jones
recognised that only a pure platonic symbol would suffice.
The symbol π had been used in the previous century in a significantly different way by the rector and
mathematician, William Oughtred (c. 1575-1 660), in his book Clavis Mathematicae (first published in
1631). Oughtred used π to represent the circumference of a given circle, so that his π varied according to
the circle's diameter, rather than representing the constant we know today. The circumference of a circle
was known in those days as the 'periphery', hence the Greek equivalent 'π' of our letter 'π'. Jones's use
of π was an important philosophical step which Oughtred had failed to make even though he had
introduced other mathematical symbols, such as :: for proportion and 'x' as the symbol for multiplication.
On Oughtred's death in 1660 some books and papers from his fine mathematical library were acquired
by the mathematician John Collins (1625-83), from whom they would eventually pass to Jones.
The irrationality of π was not proved until 1761 by Johann Lambert (1728-77), then in 1882 Ferdinand
Lindemann (1852-1939) proved that π was a non-algebraic irrational number, a transcendental number
(one which is not a solution of an algebraic equation, of any degree, with rational coefficients). The
discovery that there are two types of irrational numbers, however, does not detract from Jones's
achievement in recognising that the ratio of the circumference to the diameter could not be expressed
as a rational number.
Beyond his first use of the symbol π Jones is of interest because of his connection to a number of key
mathematical, scientific and political characters of the 18th century. He was also responsible for
developing one of the greatest scientific libraries and mathematical archives in the country which
remained in the hands of the Macclesfield family, his patrons, for nearly 300 years.
Though Jones ended his life as part of the mathematical establishment, his origins were modest. He was
born on a small farm on Anglesey in about 1675. His only formal education was at the local charity
school where he showed mathematical aptitude and it was arranged for him to work in a merchant's
counting house in London. Later he sailed to the West Indies and became interested in navigation; he
then went on to be a mathematics master on a man-of-war. He was present at the battle of Vigo in
October 1702 when the English successfully intercepted the Spanish treasure fleet as it was returning to
the port in north-west Spain under French escort. While the victorious seamen went ashore in search of
silver and the spoils of war, for Jones, according to an 1807 memoir by Baron Teignmouth, '... literary
treasures were the sole plunder that he coveted.'
On his return to England Jones left the Navy and began to teach mathematics in London, probably
initially in coffee houses where for a small fee customers could listen to a lecture. He also published his
first book, A New Compendium of the Whole Art of Practical Navigation (1702). Not long after this Jones
became tutor to Philip Yorke, later 1st Earl of Hardwicke (1690-1764), who became lord chancellor and
provided an invaluable source of introductions for his tutor.
It was probably around 1706 that Jones first came to Isaac Newton's attention when he published
Synopsis, in which he explained Newton's methods for calculus as well as other mathematical
innovations. In 1708 Jones was able to acquire Collins's extensive library and archive, which contained
several of Newton's letters and papers written in the 1670s. These would prove of great interest to Jones
and useful to his reputation.
Born half a century apart, Collins and Jones never met, yet history will forever link them because of the
library and mathematical archive that Collins started and Jones continued, arising from their shared
passion for collecting books. The son of an impoverished minister, Collins was apprenticed to a
bookseller. Essentially self-taught like Jones, he had also gone to sea and learned navigation. On his
return to London he had earned his living as a teacher and an accountant. He held several increasingly
lucrative posts and was adept at disentangling intricate accounts.
Collins's modest ambition had been to open a bookshop, but he was unable to accumulate enough
capital. In 1667, however, he was elected to the Royal Society of which he became an indispensable
member, assisting the official secretary Henry Oldenburg on mathematical subjects. Collins
corresponded with Newton and with many of the leading English and foreign mathematicians of the day,
drafting mathematical notes on behalf of the Society.
When Jones applied for the mastership of Christ's Hospital Mathematical School in 1709 he carried with
him testimonials from Edmund Halley and Newton. In spite of these he was turned down. However
Jones's former pupil, Philip Yorke, had by now embarked on his legal career and introduced his tutor to
Sir Thomas Parker (1667-1732), a successful lawyer who was on his way to becoming the next lord chief
justice in the following year. Jones joined his household and became tutor to his only son, George
(c.1697-1764). This was the start of his life-long connection with the Parker family.
Around the time that Jones bought Collins's library and archive, Newton and the German mathematician
Gottfried Leibniz (1646-1716) were in dispute over who invented calculus first. In Collins's mathematical
papers, Jones had found a transcript of one of Newton's earliest treatments of calculus, De Analyst
(1669), which in 1711 he arranged to have published. It had previously been circulated only privately.
President of the Royal Society since 1703, Newton was reluctant to have his work published and
jealously guarded his intellectual property. However, he recognised an ally in Jones.
In 1712 Jones joined the committee set up by the Royal Society to determine priority for the invention of
calculus. Jones made the Collins papers with Newton's correspondence on calculus available to the
committee and the resulting report on the dispute, published later that year, Commercium Epistolicum,
was based largely upon them. Though anonymous, Commercium Epistolicum was edited by Newton
himself and could hardly be viewed as impartial. Unsurprisingly it came down on Newton's side. (Today it
is considered that both Newton and Leibniz discovered calculus independently though Leibniz's notation
is superior to Newton's and is the one now in common use.)
By 1712 Jones was firmly positioned among the mathematical establishment. In 1718 his patron Sir
Thomas Parker was made lord chancellor and in 1721 was ennobled as Earl of Macclesfield. By this time
he had purchased Shirburn estate and castle for the then vast sum of £18,350. Shirburn castle became a
home too for Jones who was, by then, almost a family member. Besides the law, Parker had a scholarly
interest in many subjects including science and mathematics and was a generous patron of the arts as
well as the sciences. He was influential in the appointment of Halley as astronomer royal in 1721.
But there was an obverse side to the first earl's character. It seems that together with his great abilities
and ambition there was also a dangerous lust for wealth. He was accused of selling chancery masterships
to the highest bidder and of allowing suitors' funds held in trust to be misused. Parker resigned as lord
chancellor in 1725 but he was nevertheless impeached. His punishment was a fine of £30,000 and he
was forced to spend six weeks in the Tower of London before the necessary money was raised to pay the
fine. Some of his assets were sold and his name was struck from the roll of privy councillors but he did
not have to forfeit Shirburn which remains in the Macclesfield family to this day. Some dignity was
restored when in 1727 he was one of the pallbearers at Newton's funeral.
Thomas's son, George Parker, became an MP for Wallingford in 1722 and spent much of his time at
Shirburn where, with Jones's guidance, he added to the library and archive that Jones had brought with
him. George Parker developed an interest in astronomy and with the help of a friend, the astronomer
James Bradley (who became the third Astronomer Royal in 1742 on the death of Halley), he built an
astronomical observatory at Shirburn.
By 1718 Jones was dividing his time mainly between Shirburn and Tibbald's Court, near Red Lion Square,
London. Among the many influential mathematicians, astronomers and natural philosophers he
corresponded with was Roger Cotes (1682-1716), the first Plumian Professor of Astronomy at Cambridge
and considered by many to be the most talented British mathematician of his generation after Newton.
He had been entrusted with the revisions for the publication of the second edition of Newton's Principia.
Jones acted as a conduit between Newton and Cotes when relations between the two became strained.
He clearly had influence and considerable tact. In one letter Cotes wrote to Jones: 'I must beg your
assistance and management in an affair, which I cannot so properly undertake myself ...'. This was the
delicate matter of suggesting to Newton an improvement in one of his methods. Newton had a difficult
personality and had to be handled carefully. This Jones was able to do. The second, amended edition of
Principia was published in 1713 to great acclaim.
Newton was a towering eminence over most of the period and many among the scientific community
lived under his shadow. Jones also had an extensive correspondence with the astronomer and
mathematician, John Machin (c.1686-1771), who served as secretary to the Royal Society for nearly 30
years from 1718. He was also on the Society's committee to investigate the invention of calculus.
Professor of astronomy at Gresham College for nearly 40 years, Machin worked on lunar theory and
considered himself an expert on the subject. In one letter to Jones, Machin used fanciful language to
complain about Newton's lunar theory:
... she (the moon) has informed me that he (Newton) has abused her throughout the whole course of
her life, giving out that she is guilty of such irregularities and enormities in all her ways and proceedings
that no man alive is able to find where she is at any time.
He then went on to write that he, Machin, knew the moon's whereabouts and would therefore be able
to claim the £10,000 which the 'Lord Treasurer' was offering for the discovery of longitude at sea;
because his lunar theory would improve the accuracy of lunar tables.
Though Machin did not receive the reward, his lunar theory as described in Laws of the moon's motion
according to gravity was appended to the 1729 English edition of Principia after Newton's death.
Machin had also worked on a series for the ratio of the circumference to the diameter which converged
fairly rapidly. The result of his calculation was printed in Jones's 1706 book, 'true to above a 100 places;
as computed by the accurate and ready pen of the truly ingenious Mr John Machin...'. Machin performed
this by using an infinite series whose sum converged to π. In mathematical terms this means that no
matter how many terms are summed there is always a difference, however small, between that sum and
the value of the irrational number, π. In the infinite series, which Machin used, the terms alternate
between being positive and negative so that the sum is alternately lower or higher than π.
Jones also had correspondents abroad; one of particular interest was the Quaker scholar James Logan
(1674-1751) who lived in America. Logan had been born in Ireland and was invited by William Penn, the
Quaker leader and founder of Pennsylvania, to be his secretary. He prospered there and eventually
bought a plantation, Stenton, where he retired in his early fifties to pursue his interests, including
mathematics and botany. His own library of over 30,000 books was one of the most outstanding of the
18th century in America and was bequeathed to the city of Philadelphia.
In 1732 Logan wrote to Jones about an invention by, 'a young man here ... of an excellent natural genius'.
This was Thomas Godfrey (1704-49), a glazier, who in October 1730 had invented an instrument that
could be accurately used at sea because it had a single half-mirrored sight that lined up a reflected image
of the sun with the horizon. Alternatively any two astronomical objects, for instance, the moon and a
star could be lined up by moving a rotatable arm containing the mirror and reading off the angle from
the scale. This meant that movement of a ship would not interfere with the angular measurement as
both object and image would move together. It was an ingenious instrument. Logan considered that it
could be used to find longitude at sea by the lunar method. The instrument is what we now know as
Hadley's Quadrant, although it is in fact an octant. The attribution of this important invention was
claimed both by America and by England. The English astronomer John Hadley (1682-1744) had made
one of these instruments in the summer of 1730 and sent an account to the Royal Society the following
May.
Logan had sent a personal letter describing Godfreys invention to Halley, then President of the Royal
Society, addressing him as 'Esteemed Friend'. It was a friendly communication as well as a scientific one
and was not read to the Royal Society, as was customary. Logan asked Jones to make some enquiry about
the omission. Jones subsequently raised the subject with the Society in January 1734 and Godfrey's
claims to be the inventor of the instrument, though not the first, were established.
Some years later in 1736 Jones wrote to Logan, apologising for not having replied sooner, saying that:
... my affairs are such as require my constant application, and take up my mind so much that I have little,
or no leasur (sic) to think of anything else: even the mathematics. I have scarce thought of it these 18
years past, and am now almost a stranger to all improvements made that way.
But there are letters in Jones's correspondence dating from after that time that are mathematical in
subject. Perhaps he did not want to encourage Logan to send him further discoveries. Logan was a
tireless correspondent and it appears that he wrote many more letters to Jones than Jones answered.
There were certainly other things on Jones's mind. Like many other men of science, Jones was intrigued
with the problem of longitude and he wrote letters to the Royal Society on the subject of clocks keeping
accurate time as the temperature changed.
He served as a council member of the Society and became its vice-president in 1749. His income was
boosted by sinecures organised by his former pupils: he was made Secretary of the Peace through the
influence of Hardwicke and Deputy Teller to the Exchequer with George Parker's help. Nevertheless, he
also experienced financial crisis on more than one occasion when his bank collapsed, a frequent
occurrence in those days.
Jones married a second time in 1731 to Mary Nix, 30 years his junior and they had three children. He was
elected a Governor of the Foundling Hospital in 1747 when George Parker was vice-president. It was
Parker who commissioned Hogarth's portrait of Jones. Although Jones looked impressive in this portrait,
he is reported to have been 'a little short faced Welshman, and used to treat his mathematical friends
with a great deal of roughness and freedom'. Even so, as we have seen, he knew how to be tactful when
necessary and could show great kindness.
After he died in 1749, aged 74, it was reportedly said by John Robertson, a clerk and librarian to the
Royal Society, that he 'died in better circumstances than usually falls to the lot of mathematicians'. His
one surviving son, also called William, was only three years old at the time. Known as Oriental' Jones, he
excelled as a linguist, philologist and expert in Hindu Law and was duly knighted.
In 1750 George Parker wrote a paper which was read to the Royal Society entitled Remarks upon the
Solar and Lunar years. Parker was a principal proponent for the adoption of the Gregorian calendar and
the change in 1752 of the new year from March 25th to January 1st. One might consider the revision of
the calendar as part of William Jones's scientific legacy. The same year Parker was elected president of
the Royal Society, a position he held until his death.
In his will, Jones left his 'study of books' to George Parker 'as a testimony of my acknowledgement of the
many marks of his favour which I have received'. The scientific books Parker inherited from Jones,
together with the archive of papers, remained in the library at Shirburn. Access to them had been
severely restricted though it was acknowledged that they represented the most important collection of
their kind in private hands. In 2000 the archive of letters and papers was offered to Cambridge University
Library who purchased it for £6,370,000 with the aid of a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The
Macclesfield Library was finally sold at Sotheby's in 2005 in six massive sales that have replenished
libraries throughout the world.
In his lifetime, Jones's ability to retain his patrons was important and he served them well. From a
historical perspective though, Jones gave much more to the Macclesfields than he ever received from
them and, in doing so, he left a great intellectual legacy to the world.
Patricia Rothman is Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Mathematics at University College,
London
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History Today Quiz: October
What if you were asked to geometrically consider the ancient astronomical clock in Prague, pictured
below? It has a large background circle that tells the local time and the “ancient time” and then the
smaller circle rotates around on the orange line to show the current astrological sign. The yellow point is
the center of the larger clock. How does the orange line relate to the small and larger circle? How does
the hand with the moon on it (black hand with the circle) relate to both circles? Are the circles
concentric or tangent? After completing this Concept, you'll be able to use your knowledge of parts of
circles to answer questions like these.
Chord - is a segment whose endpoints lie on a circle
Secant - is a line that intersects the circle at two points
Diameter is the longest secant in a circle.
Tangent - is a line in the plane of the circle that intersects the circle at exactly one point
Sector -The part of a circle enclosed by two radii of a circle and an arc.
The cut piece of pizza is minor sector and the remaining is the major sector.
Segment -part of a circle bounded by a chord and an arc
Semi-circle - is an arc whose endpoints are endpoints of a diameter
(i) Center:
The center of a circle is a fixed point within the circle from which all the points of the closing curve are
equidistant.
Centre of a Circle
2Save
O is the centre.
(ii) Circumference:
The curve which closes a circle is called its circumference. The length of the circumference is called the
length of the circle.
Circumference of a Circle
2Save
(iii) Radius:
The distance from the centre to any point on the circumference of a circle is called the radius of the
circle. The symbol of the radius is r.
Radius of a Circle
2Save
(iv) Diameter:
The line-segment passing through the centre and meeting the points on the circumference is called the
diameter of the circle. Diameter is denoted by 'D'.
Diameter of a Circle
2Save
AB is a diameter of the circle.

Diameter is twice the length of the radius concerned.
Thus, D = 2r [Diameter = 2radius]
or
r = D/2 [Radius = Diameter/2]
(v) Arc:
Any part of the circumference is called an arc of the circle.
Arc of a Circle
2Save
(vi) Chord:
The line-segment joining the two ends of an arc is known as a chord. A diameter is the longest chord of a
circle
TERMS TERMS
Arc - Two endpoints on a circle and all of the points on the circle between those two endpoints.
Center - The point from which all points on a circle are equidistant.
Central Angle - An angle whose vertex is the center of a circle.
Chord - A segment whose endpoints are on a circle.
Circle - A geometric figure composed of points that are equidistant from a given point.
Circle Segment - The region within a circle bounded by a chord of that circle and the minor arc whose
endpoints are the same as those of the chord.
Circumscribed Polygon - A polygon whose segments are tangent to a circle.
Concentric Circles - Circles that share a center.
Diameter - A chord that intersects with the center of a circle.
Equidistant - The same distance. Objects can be equidistant from one another.
Inscribed Polygon - A polygon whose vertices intersect with a circle.
Major Arc - An arc greater than 180 degrees.
Minor Arc - An arc less than 180 degrees.
Point Of Tangency - The point of intersection between a circle and its tangent line or tangent segment.
Radius - A segment with one endpoint at the center of a circle and the other endpoint on the circle.
Secant Line - A line that intersects with a circle at two points.
Sectors - A region inside a circle bounded by a central angle and the minor arc whose endpoints
intersect with the rays that compose the central angle.
Semicircle - A 180 degree arc.
Tangent Line - A line that intersects with a circle at only one point (the point of tangency).
Tangent Segment - A segment with one endpoint at the point of tangency of a circle and the other
endpoint on the tangent line.
0. Definition: The measure of an arc of a circle is equal to the measure of the central angle that
intercepts the arc.
1. Inscribed angle theorem. The measure of an inscribed angle is equal to one-half the measure of its
intercepted arc. The usual proof begins with the case where one side of the inscribed angle is a
diameter. Then the central angle is an external angle of an isosceles triangle and the result follows.
Situations where a side of the inscribed angle is not a diameter can be reduces to the former by
appropriate auxiliary lines.
2. An angle inscribed in a semicircle is a right angle. The intercepted arc is a semicircle and therefore
has a measure of equivalent to two right angles. Since the inscribe ange has measure of one-half of the
intercepted arc, it is a right angle.
3. The measure of an angle formed by a tangent and chord is equal to one-half the measure of its
intercepted arc. A useful pair of auxiliary lines is to contruct an isosceles triangle with one side parallel
to the tangent line.
4. If two chords intersect to form the the vertex of an angle within a circle, the measure of the angle is
equal to one-half the sum of the measures of the two arcs intercepted by the angle and its vertical angle.
A prudent auxiliary line is a chord connecting two of the endpoints of a chord, forming a triangle for the
vertical angles are exterior angles of the triangle.
5. If two secants intersect to form thevertex of an angle outside a circle and the sides of the angle
intercept arcs on the circle, then the measure of the angle is equal to one-half the difference of the
measures of the arcs intercepted by the sides of the angle. A prudent auxiliary line is a chord connecting
points of intersection of the sides of the angle with the circle as shown at the right.
6. If inscribed angles of a circle intercept the same arc then they are congruent. This follows from the
Inscribed Angle Theorem.
7. If two chords intersect within a circle, the product of the measures of the segments of one will be
equal to the product of the measures of the segments of the other.
8. If a tangent segment and a secant segment are drawn to a circle from an external point, then the
square of the measure of the tangent segment is equal to the product of the secant segment and its
external portion.
9. If two secant segments are drawn to a circle from an external point, then the product of the
measures of one of these segments and its external portion is equal to the product of the measures of
the other with its external portion.
Isosceles Triangle
Two Radii and a chord make an isosceles triangle.

Perpendicular Chord Bisection
The perpendicular from the centre of a circle to a chord will always bisect the chord (split it into two
equal lengths).
Angles Subtended on the Same Arc
Angles subtended on the same arc
Angles formed from two points on the circumference are equal to other angles, in the same arc, formed
from those two points.
Angle in a Semi-Circle
angle in a semi-circle
Angles formed by drawing lines from the ends of the diameter of a circle to its circumference form a
right angle. So c is a right angle.
Proof
We can split the triangle in two by drawing a line from the centre of the circle to the point on the
circumference our triangle touches.
Divide the triangle in two

We know that each of the lines which is a radius of the circle (the green lines) are the same length.
Therefore each of the two triangles is isosceles and has a pair of equal angles.
Two isosceles triangles
But all of these angles together must add up to 180°, since they are the angles of the original big
triangle.
Therefore x + y + x + y = 180, in other words 2(x + y) = 180.
and so x + y = 90. But x + y is the size of the angle we wanted to find.
Tangents
A tangent to a circle is a straight line which touches the circle at only one point (so it does not cross the
circle- it just touches it).
A tangent to a circle forms a right angle with the circle's radius, at the point of contact of the tangent.
angle with a tangent
Also, if two tangents are drawn on a circle and they cross, the lengths of the two tangents (from the
point where they touch the circle to the point where they cross) will be the same.
Tangents from an external point are equal in length
Angle at the Centre

Angle at the centre
The angle formed at the centre of the circle by lines originating from two points on the circle's
circumference is double the angle formed on the circumference of the circle by lines originating from the
same points. i.e. a = 2b.
Proof
You might have to be able to prove this fact:
proof diagram 1
OA = OX since both of these are equal to the radius of the circle. The triangle AOX is therefore isosceles
and so ∠OXA = a
Similarly, ∠OXB = b
proof diagram 2
Since the angles in a triangle add up to 180, we know that ∠XOA = 180 - 2a
Similarly, ∠BOX = 180 - 2b
Since the angles around a point add up to 360, we have that ∠AOB = 360 - ∠XOA - ∠BOX
= 360 - (180 - 2a) - (180 - 2b)
= 2a + 2b = 2(a + b) = 2 ∠AXB
Alternate Segment Theorem
Alternate segment theorem

This diagram shows the alternate segment theorem. In short, the red angles are equal to each other and
the green angles are equal to each other.
Proof
You may have to be able to prove the alternate segment theorem:
proof of alternate segment theorem
We use facts about related angles
A tangent makes an angle of 90 degrees with the radius of a circle, so we know that ∠OAC + x = 90.
The angle in a semi-circle is 90, so ∠BCA = 90.
The angles in a triangle add up to 180, so ∠BCA + ∠OAC + y = 180
Therefore 90 + ∠OAC + y = 180 and so ∠OAC + y = 90
But OAC + x = 90, so ∠OAC + x = ∠OAC + y
Hence x = y
Cyclic Quadrilaterals
A cyclic quadrilateral is a four-sided figure in a circle, with each vertex (corner) of the quadrilateral
touching the circumference of the circle. The opposite angles of such a quadrilateral add up to 180
degrees.
Area of Sector and Arc Length
A sector
If the radius of the circle is r,
Area of sector = πr2 × A/360
Arc length = 2πr × A/360
In other words, area of sector = area of circle × A/360
arc length = circumference of circle × A/360
Now for the theorems:
1. The angle at the centre is twice the angle at the circumference
2. The angle in a semicircle is a right angle
3. Angles in the same segment are equal
4. Opposite angles in a cyclic quadrilateral sum to 180°
5. The angle between the chord and the tangent is equal to the angle in the alternate segment
Theorem) If a line is tangent to a circle, then the line is perpendicular to the radius drawn to the point of
tangency.
(Corollary) Tangents to a circle from a point are congruent.
BA is congruent to CA
(Theorem) If a line in the plane of a circle is perpendicular to a radius at its outer endpoint, then the line
is tangent to the circle.
Arc Addition Postulate
The measures of the arc formed by two adjacent is the sum of the measures of these two arcs.
(Theorem) In the same circle or in congruent circles, two minor arcs are congruent if and only if their
central angles are congruent.
arc AB is congruent to arc CD
<AOB is congruent to <COD
(Theorem) In the same circle or in congruent circles:
1) Congruent arcs have congruent chords
2) Congruent chords have congruent arcs
(Theorem) A diameter that is perpendicular to a chord bisects the chords and its arc
(Theorem) In the same circle or in congruent circles:
1) Chords equally distant from the center (or centers) are congruent
2) Congruent chords are equally distant from the center (or centers)
(Theorem) The measure of an inscribed angle is equal to half the measure of its intercepted arc
(Corollary) If two inscribed angles intercept the same arc, then the angles are congruent
(Corollary) An angle inscribed in a semicircle is a right angle
(Corollary) If a quadrilateral is inscribed in a circle, then its opposite are supplementary
(Theorem) The measure of an angle formed by a chord and a tangent is equal to half the measure of the
intercepted arc.
(Theorem) The measure of an angle formed by two chords that intersect inside a circle is equal to half
the sum of the measures of the intercepted arcs.
m<E = 1/2 (AB + DC)
(Theorem) The measure of an angle formed by two secants, two tangents, or a secant and a tangent
drawn from one point outside a circle is equal to half the difference of the measures of the intercepted
arc.
(Theorem) When two chords intersect inside a circle, the product of the segments of one chord equals
the product of the segment of the other chord.
(Theorem) When two secants are drawn to a circle from an external point, the product of one secant
segment and its external segment equals the product of the other secant segment and its external
segment.
(Theorem) When a secant segment and a tangent segment are drawn to a circle from an external point,
the product of the secant segment and its external segment is equal to the square of the tangent
segment.
CIRCLES OF LIFE
Everything
Turns,
Rotates,
Spins,
Circles,
Loops,
Pulsates,
Resonates,
And
Repeats.
Circles
Of life,
Born from
Pulses
Of light,
Vibrate
To
Breathe,
While
Spiraling
Outwards
For
Infinity
Through
The lens
Of time,
And into
A sea
Of stars
And
Lucid
Dreams.
Poetry by Suzy Kassem
energy, which is neither created or destroyed. Everything she is was here before me. Everything she was
will remain. Her existence touches both my past and my future at one point- infinity.
Lifelines aren't lines at all. They are more like circles.
Its safe to start anywhere and the story will curve its way back to the starting point. Eventually.
In other words, it doesn't matter where I begin. It doesn't change the end.
Shannon Lee Alexander, Love and Other Unknown Variables
read about it in my mother's journal. The Witches believe we are all parts of a whole. Like the phases of
the moon. Together, we complete the circle and bring balance.
Amber Argyle, Witch Song (Witch Song, #1)
Tags: beliefs, circles, journals, moon, waning-gibbous
The life of man is a self-evolving circle, which, from a ring imperceptibly small, rushes on all sides
outwards to new and larger circles, and that without end. The extent to which this generation of circles,
wheel without wheel, will go, depends on the force or truth of the individual soul.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Tags: circles, life
There are countless circles of hell; believers never penetrate the ninth circle.
Dejan Stojanovic, The Sun Watches the Sun
The interwoven spheres and vines ran along the bottom. I'd done some research, and I'd found this motif
everywhere. These overlapping circles were ancient, tracing back to Pythagorean geometry--geometry, a
measure of the world. In more mystical terms, the shape had always evoked tghe place where world
overlap: dreaming with waking, death with life, the visible with the unseen. [p. 362]
Kim Edwards, The Lake of Dreams
Tags: circles
Andrew Jun 2017
Circles
I need to change the circles I'm in
Because I fell into the trapezoid
Of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole
Making people believe I was a square
When I was really a rectangle

You just had to look at me from the right angles
The shape of things now
Is me looking at you from the wrong angles
You're pretty hot
90°
When you turn away from me your hotness doubles
180°
I think my Pompeii worm could survive the temperatures
But if you were to turn back around
No creature could survive
360°
The paradox of the parabola in my pants
Will never be solved
It's not your math problem
We're just two points on this rotating sphere
Where time is a straight line
And our's is a segment
I wish I understood the formula
So I could predict the outcome
But there are too many variables
Leaving my head spinning in circles
And myself running in circles

Meant to be avoided
Because within those circles are triangular trials
Where two points create a perfect line
And a third point ruins that
As points are added to the population
Lines only get larger
Like the welfare line
Mammoth shapes grow wider and more complex
Like the Pentagon
Lines become more easily crossed
Angles more easily tangled
And my freezing point becomes my boiling point
While I wish for a world more two-dimensional
Because once I consider depth
I realize I could never measure up to my ruler
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Words
circle circled circles circling circuit
Andrew Jun 2017
Circles

You're pretty hot
90°
180°
360°

Meant to be avoided
Like the Pentagon
#circles
Andrew
Written by
Andrew
(26/M/Kentucky)
Follow
3.1k 1
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ryn Sep 2014
Circles
If I get lost, promise you'd leave me be
Let me walk alone in my circles
I'll find my way back...almost instinctively
Through looping thoughts and scribbles
If I should trip, promise you'd let me fall
Scrape my knee and scream a voiceless scream
Weight of the universe may seem crushing to shoulders so small
I'll walk it off and regain newfound steam
If I show signs of buckling, promise you'd let me collapse into nothing
Let me fold into myself...into an unnoticeable speck
There is solace in this space when the walls are caving
Soon I would reinvent and renew from that wreck
If I suffer a cut, promise you'd just let me bleed
Let the black of my soul gush out
Within it I would find the seed
To which all of my rantings are about

If I should begin to write, promise you'd read my scrawls
Take them as they are and not to heart
Just thoughts versus words that mean much or nothing at all
They'd stitch me anew when I start to break apart
If I keep losing myself, promise that you'd let me be
The circles I tread are very much predictable
They'd always lead me around... Don't treat me differently
Just stay where you are... I'll come back round, fresh and able...
Submit your work, meet writers and drop the ads. Become a member
Words
circle circled circles circling circuit
Andrew Jun 2017
Circles

You're pretty hot
90°
180°
360°
Meant to be avoided

Like the Pentagon
#circles
Andrew
Written by
Andrew
(26/M/Kentucky)
Follow
3.1k 1
ryn Sep 2014
Circles
If I get lost, promise you'd leave me be
Let me walk alone in my circles
I'll find my way back...almost instinctively
Through looping thoughts and scribbles
If I should trip, promise you'd let me fall
Scrape my knee and scream a voiceless scream
Weight of the universe may seem crushing to shoulders so small
I'll walk it off and regain newfound steam
If I show signs of buckling, promise you'd let me collapse into nothing
Let me fold into myself...into an unnoticeable speck
There is solace in this space when the walls are caving
Soon I would reinvent and renew from that wreck
If I suffer a cut, promise you'd just let me bleed
Let the black of my soul gush out
Within it I would find the seed
To which all of my rantings are about
If I should begin to write, promise you'd read my scrawls
Take them as they are and not to heart
Just thoughts versus words that mean much or nothing at all
They'd stitch me anew when I start to break apart

If I keep losing myself, promise that you'd let me be
The circles I tread are very much predictable
They'd always lead me around... Don't treat me differently
Just stay where you are... I'll come back round, fresh and able...
ryn
Written by
ryn
(��)
Follow
3.9k 65
Vicki Kralapp Aug 2012
RUNNING IN CIRCLES
Accidents and misfortunes crowding my life
choking out pleasures reserved for a lucky few.
Not realizing that they were there for me too, just to look for
passed by as I chose to look back, blinded to what could have been.
Running in circles skirting the truth
looking for lost moments, ticking into eternity.
My hope is in this new life that I’ve found
awakening the child I’d lost, now born again in you.

You’ve taught me to live, to look now for the simple and pure;
a glass of ***** Cana or a flock of cranes grazing on a hill.
Moving together in the rhythm of jazz
in the early morning sounds and light reflecting on you.
Your beautiful face, angelic in the morning light.
Gd Bubb May 5
- black circles.
I'm tired behind the eyes
and it goes so much further
than just having a bad night sleep.
Spenser Bennett Feb 2016
Circles
Walking in my own footsteps
Making all of the same mistakes I made last year
I'm still in love with the wrong person
I'm still in love with the same fear
Count me out
And it's blue again
Her eyes and this stormy sea
All the same to my heart
All the same rapturous belief

Fill me up with doubt
Now I'm glued to the floor again
Giving up on her
Love is only labor
Love is wasting away
Disgracing today
So I don't know if I want this
It's going back and forth
And back and forth
Shallow hearts beating
the death out of my
Ceaseless breathing
I walk these circles
Pacing around the sun
I'll follow my footsteps
Collapse back in that garden
Where we first begun
Syd Hafner Apr 6
Circles Don't End
Talk on the news,
that you have been used
Well it’s not completely untrue

Because behind closed doors,
She fakes her own skin,
it’s not as thin as she says
You don’t mind the questions she deflects,
Because you see her reflection
Well I suppose she learned from the best
And her bones are aching,
her femur is breaking
Her hair grew and her eyes turned brown,
she took the mirrors out of the house
But given the chance to leave
you still have belief
She won’t change
Please leave, be safe
I’ve known
her
for 14
straight
years
Lauren
put the
gears
in her
head
And she’s
leaving them
there
Emma Brigham Jul 2018
Concentric Circles
My baby moves in jumps and flutters inside me,
like the barn swallows that make nests
of dirt and twigs outside the restaurant.
Yesterday they disappeared
and I learned that a maintenance man came and hosed them down.
Tragic, he said.
But necessary.
Too much bird ****.
When I got pregnant
it felt like waking up at the top of a roller coaster.
And then an engagement.
Somehow
this is how my life is going
and somehow it does not feel like cliche.
Ask as many what-ifs as you want

but there is just a single trajectory.
Even though you have to fall asleep one day
before waking in the next.
Moving through concentric circles and trying to find the center.
Biology is happening
in a part of me that I am still getting to know.
Kaleidoscoping.
She was once the size of a grape
but now I read she can blink her eyelids.
She is also not like the barn swallows.
Sam Hawkins Jun 2017
Circles
Gratitude felt like a handshake coming back.
Spring green leaf calling
made echoes in me.
What a family this is!
Now that I have ears to hear!
In every cell of me,
a Universe.
In every Universe of me
magnificent trees
dropping discreet
and sometimes upsetting
messages.
Moe Jun 20
It's You
those tiny circles
you pretend to draw on my skin
always make me smile
guy scutellaro May 2017
circles of night and light
"hello kate ," Jack delleto says and sits down.
"my name isn't kate. it's Kathleen.'" hello Dell. "sue thinks Dell is such a **** name. " what should I call
you?"
"how about darling?'
she looks up from the whiskey glass "hello, Jack, DARLIN." her soft deep voice whispers.
Kathleen crosses her legs and the black dress rides up to the middle of her thigh.
Jack glances at the milky white flesh. she is drunk and Dell does not care. he leans forward, ''do you
wanna dance ?
"but no one else is dancing."

"Well, we could go to the beach and take a walk on the sand.
"It's twenty degrees outside." she swallows the last of the whiskey. "we'll freeze."
"i' ll keep you warm."
"all right let's dance."
"jack stands up and takes her by the hand. she rises and jack holds her close to him. jack feels her heart
thumbing.
she rests her head on his shoulder. "what matters most to you?"
"not giving up."
"what's important to you?" he asks.
Kate lifts her head off his shoulder and looks into his eyes. "I don't want to be on welfare, and I want to
be able to send my son to college." she rests her cheek against his. "I lived in foster care homes all my life
and I always knew one day I'd have to leave. do you know the difference between a house and a home?"
Her voice is a roaring whisper in his ear. "love."
the song comes to an end. kate takes a cigarette from the pack.
jack strikes a match and the light flickers in her eyes. "maybe someday you'll have a home."
"do you want me to?" she leans forward and puts the cigarette to the flame.
"Yes, "and jack shakes out the match.
Isabelle Bigelow Aug 2018
circles
we lost ourselves in ourselves.
footprints in the snow only led us
back to where we’d started.
i don’t know how you managed
to talk your way out of that one.
Keith W Fletcher May 2018
"...circles?"
"Why am I walking in circles?"
Wait, I've heard that recently...
...or have I said that before?
Am I walking around in pajamas?
Well ...pajamas and a robe that's better
Better? Better what?
Better me than you ........Okay Samual
I hear you ....
.....where you hiding ...Is mom and dad home?
Where am..." Why am I ......
why am I walking around in circles?"

Here come those people ...I'm supposed to know them
They like it when I smile and nod
I've seen them before .....!?
Why am I walking around in circles ?!
L B Jan 29
Winter Birds: Slow Circles
Winter Birds
Slow circles
survival’s muttering flotilla
of buoyant quacks
that worry black water’s warmth
of 32 degrees
just short of the freeze
stirred
by tired paddling
Maybe a dozen—clockwise slow
till morning finds the one that slept
through snow’s hypnosis
in dawn’s quiet clench....
King Panda Nov 2017
nighttime party girl
starlight snaps your
cigarette awake. the imperfect
circles of earth’s motion orbit

around your breast. the moon
chimes
from your ears.
north and south run
the rivers of
smeared mascara,
you stop. listen to
the man
playing fiddle with
half-hearted
bar light.
© Copyright 2018 History Today Ltd. Company no. 1556332.
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Circle

Click below to see one of the Associated curves.

Definitions of the Associated curves Evolute

Inverse curve wrt origin Inverse wrt another circle

Pedal curve wrt origin Pedal wrt another point

Caustic wrt horizontal rays Caustic curve wrt another point

MARCH 12, 2015

Patricia Rothman | Published in History Today Volume 59 Issue 7 July 2009

William Jones, mathematician from Wales, 1740

William Jones, mathematician from Wales, 1740

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Venus in the Face of the Sun

18th century portrait of Elizabeth Tollet

Elizabeth Tollet and her Scientific Sisters

Untitled drawing by Nina Jirsikovà, 1941.

Menstruation and the Holocaust

The World of Medieval Dogdom

A Chinese teacher. Painting by a Chinese artist, ca. 1850. Wellcome Collection.

History Today Quiz: October

Chord - is a segment whose endpoints lie on a circle

Secant - is a line that intersects the circle at two points

Diameter is the longest secant in a circle.

Segment -part of a circle bounded by a chord and an arc

Semi-circle - is an arc whose endpoints are endpoints of a diameter

AB is a diameter of the circle.

Thus, D = 2r [Diameter = 2radius]

r = D/2 [Radius = Diameter/2]

Any part of the circumference is called an arc of the circle.

Central Angle - An angle whose vertex is the center of a circle.

Chord - A segment whose endpoints are on a circle.

Circumscribed Polygon - A polygon whose segments are tangent to a circle.

Concentric Circles - Circles that share a center.

Diameter - A chord that intersects with the center of a circle.

Inscribed Polygon - A polygon whose vertices intersect with a circle.

Major Arc - An arc greater than 180 degrees.

Minor Arc - An arc less than 180 degrees.

Secant Line - A line that intersects with a circle at two points.

Semicircle - A 180 degree arc.

Two Radii and a chord make an isosceles triangle.

Angles Subtended on the Same Arc

Angles subtended on the same arc

Divide the triangle in two

Two isosceles triangles

Therefore x + y + x + y = 180, in other words 2(x + y) = 180.

and so x + y = 90. But x + y is the size of the angle we wanted to find.

angle with a tangent

Tangents from an external point are equal in length

Angle at the Centre

You might have to be able to prove this fact:

Similarly, ∠BOX = 180 - 2b

= 360 - (180 - 2a) - (180 - 2b)

Alternate Segment Theorem

Alternate segment theorem

You may have to be able to prove the alternate segment theorem:

proof of alternate segment theorem

We use facts about related angles

The angle in a semi-circle is 90, so ∠BCA = 90.

The angles in a triangle add up to 180, so ∠BCA + ∠OAC + y = 180

Therefore 90 + ∠OAC + y = 180 and so ∠OAC + y = 90

But OAC + x = 90, so ∠OAC + x = ∠OAC + y

Area of Sector and Arc Length

Area of sector = πr2 × A/360

Arc length = 2πr × A/360