Surface area of a cone problem

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around deriving the surface area of a cone, focusing on the mathematical formulation and integration techniques involved in the process.

Discussion Character

  • Mathematical reasoning, Problem interpretation, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to derive the surface area using double integrals but encounters difficulties with a square root term in their calculations. They express uncertainty about how to simplify or cancel this term. Other participants question the calculations leading to the integrand and suggest clarifying the use of parentheses in the expressions.

Discussion Status

Participants are actively engaging with the mathematical expressions presented, with some providing feedback on the calculations. There is a focus on ensuring the correct interpretation of the integrand and the proper application of mathematical operations. No consensus has been reached yet, and the discussion remains exploratory.

Contextual Notes

Participants are working under the constraints of homework rules, which may limit the extent of guidance provided. There is an emphasis on understanding the derivation process rather than arriving at a final solution.

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Homework Statement


The question is to derive the surface area of a cone.


Homework Equations


slant= square root ( r^2 + h^2)
surface area= int int [square root(fx^2 + fy^2 +1) da]
surface area of cone side= pi *r(r^2+h^2)
3d cone formula: z= h/r(squareroot x^2+y^2)


The Attempt at a Solution


by looking at the structure I know that it is the area of the base (circle) + the area of the slant/side, but when I solve for the surface area using double integrals I'm stuck w/ squareroot 2 in the formula. How can I cancel that out?

i calculated fx as hx/rsqareroot(x^2+y^2)
and fy as hy/rsquareroot(x^2+y^2)

i plugged that into the formula for surface area and got: int int [h/r squareroot(2)] r dr d@
it feels like it isn't right and I don't know how to cancel the sqareroot(2) during integration. Can someone hint me in the right direction?
 
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fx and fy look ok. But when I compute sqrt(1+(fx)^2+(fy)^2) I don't get what you got for the integrand (in particular, no sqrt(2)). Can you tell us how you got that?
 
Dick said:
fx and fy look ok. But when I compute sqrt(1+(fx)^2+(fy)^2) I don't get what you got for the integrand (in particular, no sqrt(2)). Can you tell us how you got that?

sure:
int int squareroot [(hx/rsquareroot(x^2+y^2))^2 + (hy/rsquareroot(x^2+y^2))^2 + 1] da
int int squareroot [(h^2*x^2/r^2 (x^2+y^2)) + (h^2*y^2/r^2(x^2+y^2)) + 1] da
int int squareroot [(h^2/r^2) x^2/(x^2+y^2) + y^2/(x^2+y^2) +1] da
the +1 should change into: (x^2+y^2)/(x^2+y^2)
int int squareroot [h^2/r^2 (x^2+ y^2/(x^2+y^2)) + x^2+y^2/(x^2+y^2)] da
int int h/r squareroot(2) r dr d@

does it look right? :/ there's probablt something big that I'm missing but its so hard to see
 
You aren't putting enough parentheses in and you are loosing track of what multiplies what.
In this step:
int int squareroot [(h^2/r^2) x^2/(x^2+y^2) + y^2/(x^2+y^2) +1] da
the h^2/r^2 only multiplies the first two terms, not the 1. Combine them first and multiply by h^2/r^2. Then add the 1.
 

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