Can we say that a line is a particular case of a triangle

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the relationship between straight lines and triangles, particularly whether a straight line can be considered a special case of a triangle. Participants explore concepts related to angles, the sine function, and geometric interpretations, including the unit circle and projections.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests that a straight line can be viewed as a triangle where the sum of two sides equals the third side, with specific angle conditions (0° and 180°).
  • Another participant argues that the sine function is better defined using the unit circle rather than triangles, explaining the relationship between angles and chord lengths.
  • A later reply supports the idea that a right triangle can become a line segment when one angle approaches zero, leading to overlapping sides.
  • Another participant introduces a projection analogy involving a stick and its shadow to illustrate how angles affect lengths, particularly when the angle is 90°.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the relationship between lines and triangles, with some supporting the idea of a line as a special case of a triangle and others emphasizing the definitions related to the unit circle. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the validity of these interpretations.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference specific geometric definitions and relationships, but there are unresolved assumptions regarding the applicability of triangle properties to straight lines and the implications of angle measures.

prashant singh
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I think we can say that a straight line is a triangle in which sum of two side equals third side in which two angle equals 0° and the middle angle equals 180°, but can we say that a striaght line is a triangle with two angle equals 90°, I am saying this because my sister is not beliving that sin(90°) = 1, she is saying that for proving sin(90°) = 1, I am making the triangle as a straight line but these ratios are only applicable for triangles , I told her that there will be no triangle with two angle equals 90° therefore I have to make it as a straight line.
 
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The sine function is defined properly on a unit radius circle not a triangle.
When you do it this way, ##\theta## is the half-angle subtended by a chord. Half the length of the chord is the sine of the half-angle.
Draw a line of symmetry through the diagram to recover the usual soh cah toa triangles.

When the angle is 90deg, then the chord is just the diameter ... which is 2 for the unit circle.
Half the diameter is 1 ... hence sin(90)=1.

Similarly, if you draw a tangent to the circle at the symmetry line, the length of the tangent inside ##\theta## is called "the tangent of theta".
The distance along an angle line to the tangent is called the secant.

cosine, cotangent, and cosecant, are what yuo get with the above definitions using the complimentary angles.

Also see:
https://www.mathsisfun.com/geometry/unit-circle.html

You can argue that a rt-triangle becomes a line segment when one angle is zero. The other two angles are 90deg, two sides overlap and one has length zero... but it is easier to show on a circle.
 
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Wow great sir thank a lot

Simon Bridge said:
The sine function is defined properly on a unit radius circle not a triangle.
When you do it this way, ##\theta## is the half-angle subtended by a chord. Half the length of the chord is the sine of the half-angle.
Draw a line of symmetry through the diagram to recover the usual soh cah toa triangles.

When the angle is 90deg, then the chord is just the diameter ... which is 2 for the unit circle.
Half the diameter is 1 ... hence sin(90)=1.

Similarly, if you draw a tangent to the circle at the symmetry line, the length of the tangent inside ##\theta## is called "the tangent of theta".
The distance along an angle line to the tangent is called the secant.

cosine, cotangent, and cosecant, are what yuo get with the above definitions using the complimentary angles.

Also see:
https://www.mathsisfun.com/geometry/unit-circle.html

You can argue that a rt-triangle becomes a line segment when one angle is zero. The other two angles are 90deg, two sides overlap and one has length zero... but it is easier to show on a circle.
 
Basicaly at the end u are saying that we can say that a right angle triangle will become straight line when one of its angle is zero. I got the idea of unit circle.thanks a lot sir.
 
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It also works, and is less abstract, as a projection:
... if you have a stick upright on flat ground, with parallel light coming vertically down, then it's shadow has zero length.
If you tilt the stick an angle A to the vertical, the shadow gets longer ... when A=90deg, the shadow is the same length as the stick.
If the stick is 1 meter long, then the length of the shadow is sin(A) meters.
 
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