Calc 3 question (binormal, normal vectors)

jaejoon89
Messages
187
Reaction score
0
Hi, this is a calc 3 question. I know the binormal is given by

B = T x N

where
Binormal vector, B
Tangent vector, T
Normal vector, N

Also,
B = (R'(t) x R''(t)) / | R'(t) x R''(t) |
T = R'(t) / | R'(t) |

Does that mean
N = R''(t) / |R''(t)|?
 
Last edited:
Physics news on Phys.org
jaejoon89 said:
Hi, this is a calc 3 question. I know the binormal is given by

B = T x N

where
Binormal vector, B
Tangent vector, T
Normal vector, N

Also,
B = (R'(t) x R''(t)) / | R'(t) x R''(t) |
T = R'(t) / | R'(t) |

Does that mean
N = R''(t) / |R''(t)|?
No.
\vec{N}= \frac{\vec{T}&#039;}{|\vec{T}&#039;|}[/itex]<br /> Which is NOT the same as <br /> R&quot;/|R&quot;|<br /> if |T| is not a constant.
 
There are two things I don't understand about this problem. First, when finding the nth root of a number, there should in theory be n solutions. However, the formula produces n+1 roots. Here is how. The first root is simply ##\left(r\right)^{\left(\frac{1}{n}\right)}##. Then you multiply this first root by n additional expressions given by the formula, as you go through k=0,1,...n-1. So you end up with n+1 roots, which cannot be correct. Let me illustrate what I mean. For this...
Back
Top