Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

Post History

50%
+1 −1
Q&A proving relative lengths on a secant

posted 3y ago by Peter Taylor‭  ·  edited 3y ago by Peter Taylor‭

Answer
#4: Post edited by user avatar Peter Taylor‭ · 2021-05-14T14:07:28Z (almost 3 years ago)
Complete argument
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the midpoint of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.
  • ![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)
  • Show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
  • Most of that follows from these basics:
  • * angles at a line sum to 180
  • * angles in a triangle sum to 180
  • * two sides and their enclosing angle completely determine a triangle
  • That just leaves finding a suitably basic argument that $FD$ is perpendicular to $AC$.
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the midpoint of $AD$). I add a perpendicular to $AD$ from $O$ which intersects $AC$ at $G$, and lines $OF$ and $DG$ which intersect at $H$.
  • ![As described above](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/nqUc7UBs5MEKjoo4Y1gvVU47)
  • The key idea is to show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
  • One argument which uses fairly basic lemmata and certainly makes no mention of similar triangles is as follows:
  • 1. Angle $ACD = 60^\circ$ because it's an angle of an equilateral triangle.
  • 2. Angle $CAD = 30^\circ$ because AD is a bisector.
  • 3. $\overline{AO} = \overline{OD}$ by definition of $O$.
  • 4. Angles $AOG = DOG = 90^\circ$ by definition of $G$.
  • 5. Angle $AGO = 60^\circ$ by sum of angles in a triangle.
  • 6. $AOG$ is congruent to $DOG$ by side-angle-side.
  • 7. Angle $ODG = 30^\circ$ and $OGD = 60^\circ$ in consequence.
  • 8. Angle $DGF = 60^\circ$ by sum of angles on a line.
  • 9. $AO$ and $OF$ are radii of the circle, so $AOF$ is isosceles and angle $OFA = OAF = 30^\circ$.
  • 10. Angle $FOG = 30^\circ$ by sum of angles in a triangle.
  • 11. Angle $DOF = 60^\circ$ by e.g. sum of angles on a line.
  • 12. $OD$ and $OF$ are radii of the circle, so $DOF$ is isosceles and angle $ODF = OFD$. But since angles in a triangle sum to $180^\circ$ and $DOF = 60^\circ$ that means that $ODF = OFD = 60^\circ$.
  • 13. The angles of $OGD$ and $DFG$ are all known and they share edge $DG$, so we have enough to show that they're congruent.
  • 14. Angle $DFC = 90^\circ$ by sum of angles on a line.
  • 15. Angle $FDC = 30^\circ$ by e.g. sum of angles in a triangle.
  • 16. The angles of $DFG$ and $DFC$ are known and they share edge $DF$, so we have enough to show that they're congruent.
#3: Post edited by user avatar Peter Taylor‭ · 2021-05-14T12:51:54Z (almost 3 years ago)
Actually I was a bit too blithe in how easy it is to show congruence
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the midpoint of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.
  • ![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)
  • By using the facts that angles at a line sum to 180 and angles in a triangle sum to 180 you can show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the midpoint of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.
  • ![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)
  • Show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
  • Most of that follows from these basics:
  • * angles at a line sum to 180
  • * angles in a triangle sum to 180
  • * two sides and their enclosing angle completely determine a triangle
  • That just leaves finding a suitably basic argument that $FD$ is perpendicular to $AC$.
#2: Post edited by user avatar Peter Taylor‭ · 2021-05-14T12:35:50Z (almost 3 years ago)
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the bisector of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.
  • ![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)
  • By using the facts that angles at a line sum to 180 and angles in a triangle sum to 180 you can show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
  • This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the midpoint of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.
  • ![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)
  • By using the facts that angles at a line sum to 180 and angles in a triangle sum to 180 you can show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$
#1: Initial revision by user avatar Peter Taylor‭ · 2021-05-14T12:35:29Z (almost 3 years ago)
This image matches the description in the question (note that, in violation of what I consider to be conventional, $O$ is not the centre of the circle but the bisector of $AD$). $OG$ is perpendicular to $OD$.

![As described in question with additional perpendicular from O intersecting AC at G](https://math.codidact.com/uploads/XJDy4ouAAmpnuu6mh72ZsS4y)

By using the facts that angles at a line sum to 180 and angles in a triangle sum to 180 you can show that $AOG$, $DOG$, $DFG$ and $CDF$ are all congruent. Then since the area of a triangle is a half of the base times the height, $$\tfrac{1}{2} \overline{AF} \cdot \overline{DF} = 3 \cdot \tfrac{1}{2} \overline{CF} \cdot \overline{DF}$$