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Example Questions
Example Question #361 : Plane Geometry
In the above diagram, and have lengths and , respectively. Give the radius of the circle.
The question cannot be answered with the information given.
If two chords of a circle intersect, the measure of the angles they form is equal to half the sum of the measures of the angles they intercept that is,
The ratio of the measures of arcs on the same circle is equal to that of their lengths, so
and
Substituting:
if is the circumference of the circle, and the length of the arc is ,
has length and measure so
or
Since, if the radius is , ,
Solve for :
Example Question #362 : Plane Geometry
In the above diagram, and have lengths and , respectively. Give the radius of the circle.
The question cannot be answered with the information given.
The ratio of the degree measures of the arcs is the same as that of their lengths. Therefore,
and
If a secant and a tangent are drawn to a circle from a point outside the circle, the measure of the angle they form is equal to half the difference of the measures of their intercepted arcs; therefore,
Substituting:
Since has length , then, if we let be the circumference of the circle,
Divide the circumference by to obtain the radius:
Example Question #61 : Radius
Give the radius of a circle with diameter fifteen yards.
Convert fifteen yards to inches by multiplying by 36:
The radius of a circle is one half its diameter, so multiply this by :
Example Question #61 : Radius
In the above diagram, has length . Give the radius of the circle to the nearest whole number.
The question cannot be answered with the information given.
Call . The measure of the corresponding major arc is
If two tangents are drawn to a circle from a point outside the circle, the measure of the angle they form is equal to half the difference of the measures of their intercepted arcs; therefore
Substituting:
Therefore, . Since has length , it follows that if is the circumference of the circle,
Divide the circumference by to obtain the radius:
.
This makes 47 the correct choice.
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