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Conics!!! (1 Viewer)

zeek

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okay i have no idea what i am doing wrong but i cannot for the life of me get this answer right even though i'm pretty sure everything is right.
Find the locus of a variable point P(x,y) which moves so that its distance from (1,0) is one third its distance from x=9.

Don't you let PS=e.(1/3).PM where PS is the distance from the focus and PM is the distance to the directrix?
 

onebytwo

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zeek said:
okay i have no idea what i am doing wrong but i cannot for the life of me get this answer right even though i'm pretty sure everything is right.
Find the locus of a variable point P(x,y) which moves so that its distance from (1,0) is one third its distance from x=9.

Don't you let PS=e.(1/3).PM where PS is the distance from the focus and PM is the distance to the directrix?
why do you need the e?
i thought its just one of those basic 2 unit locus questions
i got an ellipse, equation 8x^2 + 9y^2 = 72
 
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zeek

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Do you get 2/3 x^2+y^2=2
Nah i get 80x2/81 - 16x/9 + y2=0 but the answer is x2/9 + y2/8=1

why do you need the e?
i thought its just one of those basic 2 unit locus questions
No, this is for the equation of an ellipse :confused: so it has an eccentricity 0<e<1...
 

onebytwo

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PS = 3PM
so PM^2 = 9PS^2
ie 9(y^2 + x^2 -2x+1) = x^2 - 18x+81
then simplify to get 8x^2 + 9y^2 = 72
then divide through by 72
 

zeek

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ok ok OMG i got it but this time i left out the e... I thought you had to put e in the equation?
 

NickP101

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No, e is the ratio of PS/PM (distance from point to focus/distance from point to directrix). It says PS = PM/3, so PS/PM = 1/3 which = e.
 

zeek

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Okay can someone please do this question...

P(acos @, bsin@) and Q(acos %, bsin%) lie on an ellipse. Show that if PQ subtends a right anle at (a,0) then tan(@/2)tan(%/2)=-b2/22.

I know what i have to do but i just can't do it... if that makes sense :confused:
 

onebytwo

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zeek said:
Okay can someone please do this question...

P(acos @, bsin@) and Q(acos %, bsin%) lie on an ellipse. Show that if PQ subtends a right anle at (a,0) then tan(@/2)tan(%/2)=-b2/22.

I know what i have to do but i just can't do it... if that makes sense :confused:
i trust you mean = - b^2/a^2

find the gradient of PS and QS where S is (a,0) and since they subtend a right angle they multiple to get -1.
so (b^2sin@sin%)/(a^2(cos@-1)(cos%-1)) = -1
break down the sin @ and the sin % to half angles in the numerator ie 2sin(@/2)cos(@/2) and 2sin(%/2)cos(%/2) respectivley
break down the cos@ and the cos% to 1-2sin^2@ and 1-2sin^2% respectively
to get to (b^2cos(@/2)cos(%/2))/(a^2sin(@/2)sin(%/2)=-1
simplifly in terms of tan(@/2) and tan(%/2) to the required relationship
EDIT:too slow
 
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zeek

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Ok here's another one lol

P(asec@,btan@) lies on the hyperbola. The tangent at P cuts the x-axis at X and the y-axis at Y. Show that PX/PY = sin2@ and deduce that if P is an extremity of a latus rectum, then PX/PY = (e2-1)/e2

I've done the first bit, but for the second bit, do all i have to do is sub ae for the x value of P rather than asec@ because it's on the focal chord?
 

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