Understanding Polar Coordinate Integration

In summary, the conversation was about a student trying to understand why their teacher divided the integration area into two parts. The teacher used polar coordinates to solve the problem, with one integral bounded by 0 to pi/4 and the other bounded by pi/4 to pi/2. The student also asked for help understanding how to convert equations to polar form, which was explained by Mark. The conversation ended with the student thanking Mark for helping them improve their exam grade.
  • #1
xstetsonx
78
0
can someone explain to me why my teacher divided the area into two?
I=[tex]\int[/tex]1,0[tex]\int[/tex](2x-x^2)^.5,0 1/(x^2+y^2)^.5dydx
ugggggh i tried to use the latex...
anyway...

he used the polar coordinate to do this. once he turned it into polar coordinate, he divided the area into 2 bounded by (pi/4 - o d[tex]\theta[/tex]) (1/cos[tex]\theta[/tex] - 0 for dr) and then + (d[tex]\theta[/tex] bounded by pi/2 - pi/4) (2cos bounded by 2 - 0)sorry i don't know how to make this more clear...ask me if you need to clarify
 
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  • #2
see the correct (hopefully) tex below, click on it to see script, note you can put the whole equation in one set of tags
[tex]\int_0^1 \int_0^{\sqrt{2x-x^2}} \sqrt{x^2+y^2} dy dx[/tex]

is this what you meant?
 
  • #3
so what was the question?
 
  • #4
lanedance said:
see the correct (hopefully) tex below, click on it to see script, note you can put the whole equation in one set of tags
[tex]\int_0^1 \int_0^{\sqrt{2x-x^2}} \sqrt{x^2+y^2} dy dx[/tex]

is this what you meant?

I think it might actually be

[tex]\int_0^1 \int_0^{\sqrt{2x-x^2}} \frac{1}{\sqrt{x^2+y^2}} dy dx[/tex]
 
  • #5
yeah i think you're right
 
  • #6
my teacher said you have to separate the area into to parts in order to solve it and i don't understand whysorry about my crappy drawing again
 

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  • #7
What exactly was the problem statement?
 
  • #8
The region over which integration takes place is the upper left quarter of a circle with radius 1 and centered at (1, 0). When you switch to a polar integral, the description for r changes, and this is why you need to write the polar form of your given integral with two integrals. For one integral, r ranges from 0 to the appropriate value on the line x = 1. For the other integral, r ranges from 0 to the appropriate value on the circle.
 
  • #9
then how you suppose to figure out the boundaries? and can you expand on the description for r changes??
 
  • #10
Enters Mark! You're in much better hands than mine now xstetsonx so I'm definitely stepping back here. Have fun! :smile:
 
  • #11
thx phyzmatrix anyways
 
  • #12
xstetsonx said:
then how you suppose to figure out the boundaries? and can you expand on the description for r changes??
Have you drawn a sketch of the region? I have described the boundaries. All you need to do is change the Cartesian equation that represents each boundary to its polar form.
 
  • #13
yup under the attachment above. well you said appropriate i am not clear. my teacher he
said for d[tex]\theta[/tex] is from 0 to pi/4 for the first one...etc i don't understand how you get this value according to that graph
 
  • #14
The graph in your attachment is not very useful, as the circle part doesn't look much like part of a circle, and almost nothing is identified with its equation. To answer your question, what are the coordinates of the point where the vertical line intersects the circle? For the same point, what are the polar coordinates?
 
  • #15
Mark44 said:
To answer your question, what are the coordinates of the point where the vertical line intersects the circle? For the same point, what are the polar coordinates?

1? cos^2+sin^2?
 
  • #16
xstetsonx said:
1? cos^2+sin^2?
Is that supposed to be a point? I'm looking for two numbers.
 
  • #17
i mean (1,1) that is where they intersect right?
 
  • #18
Right. Now, what are the polar coordinates of that point?
 
  • #19
em (cosx)^2+(sinx)^2?
 
  • #20
No. Polar coordinates are pairs of numbers (r, theta), with the first being the distance from the pole (origin) and the second the angle theta.

In any case, cos2(x) +sin2(x) is identically equal to 1.
 
  • #21
(2)^.5, 45 degrees?
 
  • #23
MARK you are once again the awesomest guy on here
thanks alot
 
  • #24
Well, thanks!

So now you understand why the limits on one integral are 0 to pi/4 and for the other they are pi/4 to pi/2, right?
 
  • #25
yup yup everything makes lot senses now but i just want to know how he get the equation 1/cosx and 2cosx

if i am doing from scratch how do i know it is that equation?
 
  • #26
Equations have = in them, and I don't see any.

The line x = 1 (one boundary of the region of integration) can be converted to polar this way:
r*cos(theta) = 1 ==> r = 1/cos(theta) = sec(theta).

The circle's equation is x^2 + y^2 = 2x. Converting to polar, you get this:
r^2 = 2rcos(theta) ==> r = 2cos(theta), which I get by dividing both sides of the first equation by r.
 
  • #27
xstetsonx said:
MARK you are once again the awesomest guy on here
thanks alot

Told you he's a legend! His input to homework threads (not necessarily my own) has helped me on more than one occasion.

Anyway, I'm waaaay off topic here! :biggrin:
 
  • #28
yea thanks to mark i got an A on my exam!
 
  • #29
That's great!
 

1. What are polar coordinates and how are they different from Cartesian coordinates?

Polar coordinates are a system of representing points in a plane using a distance (r) from the origin and an angle (θ) from a reference line. They are different from Cartesian coordinates in that they use a different set of variables and are often more convenient for describing circular or symmetrical shapes.

2. How is polar coordinate integration different from regular integration?

Polar coordinate integration is used to find the area under a curve in polar coordinates, while regular integration is used to find the area under a curve in Cartesian coordinates. In polar coordinate integration, the variables being integrated with respect to are r and θ, while in regular integration, the variables are x and y.

3. What is the formula for polar coordinate integration?

The formula for polar coordinate integration is given by ∫∫r dθdr, where r is the distance from the origin and θ is the angle from the reference line. This formula can be used to find the area under a curve in polar coordinates.

4. How do you convert between polar and Cartesian coordinates?

To convert from polar to Cartesian coordinates, you can use the formulas x = r cos(θ) and y = r sin(θ). Conversely, to convert from Cartesian to polar coordinates, you can use the formulas r = √(x^2 + y^2) and θ = tan^-1(y/x).

5. What are some real-world applications of polar coordinate integration?

Polar coordinate integration has many real-world applications, including calculating the force exerted by an electric field on a charged particle moving in a circular path, finding the center of mass of a circular object, and determining the moment of inertia of a rotating body.

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