Circle has infinite sides how many sides does a semi circle have?

  • Context: High School 
  • Thread starter Thread starter Noj Werdna
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Circle Infinite
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

A circle is defined as having an infinite number of sides due to its analogy with regular polygons, where shapes with increasingly many sides converge to form a circle. When considering a semicircle, one can conceptually divide regular polygons in half to determine the number of sides. For instance, half of a triangle retains 3 sides, while half of a square retains 4 sides. Ultimately, the discussion highlights that a semicircle does not possess traditional sides, as it is a curve, but can be viewed through the lens of polygonal division.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of geometric shapes and their properties
  • Familiarity with the concept of limits in mathematics
  • Basic knowledge of polygons and their characteristics
  • Awareness of mathematical definitions and terminology
NEXT STEPS
  • Explore the concept of limits in calculus to understand infinite series
  • Research the properties of curves versus polygons in geometry
  • Study the definitions and characteristics of various geometric shapes
  • Investigate the mathematical implications of dividing shapes and their sides
USEFUL FOR

Students, educators, mathematicians, and anyone interested in the properties of geometric shapes and the philosophical implications of mathematical definitions.

Noj Werdna
Messages
13
Reaction score
0
If a circle has infinite sides how many sides does a semi circle have?
i have asked my teachers at school but they have ll said u wud have 2 divide infinity by 2 and +1 which obviously isn't possible cos infinity isn't reli a number is it...

Thanks
 
Mathematics news on Phys.org


A circle is said to have infinitely many "sides" due to the analogy with regular polygons.
(i.e. a triangle has 3, a square 4, and so on)
Eventually you get a shape with so many sides that it "becomes" a circle.
If you want to find how many "sides" a semicircle has, just continue in the same way...
Cut regular polygons in half and work out how many sides they have
(i.e. half a triangle has 3 sides half a square has 4, half a pentagon... etc)

Do you see the idea?

(It's just a bad/weird definition of a circle, since it doesn't really have sides, does it?)
 


Any curve can be looked at as having an infinite number of 'sides' whose length goes to zero, no matter how big.
 


there are two sides to a circle - inside and outside. (posted lest someone begin to take this more seriously than the topic deserves)
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
3K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
2K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
3K
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
3K
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
1K
  • · Replies 31 ·
2
Replies
31
Views
3K
  • · Replies 32 ·
2
Replies
32
Views
2K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
4K
  • · Replies 17 ·
Replies
17
Views
2K