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Solution - Properties of ellipses

Equation in standard form x219+y2112=1
\frac{x^2}{\frac{1}{9}}+\frac{y^2}{\frac{1}{12}}=1
Center (0,0)
(0, 0)
Radius of the major axis 0.333
0.333
Vertex_1 (0.333,0)
(0.333, 0)
Vertex_2 (0.333,0)
(-0.333, 0)
Radius of the minor axis 0.289
0.289
Co-vertex_1 (0,0.289)
(0, 0.289)
Co-vertex_2 (0,0.289)
(0, -0.289)
Focal length 0.167
0.167
Focus_1 (0.167,0)
(0.167, 0)
Focus_2 (0.167,0)
(-0.167, 0)
Area 0.096π
0.096π
x-intercepts (13,0),(-13,0)
(\frac{1}{3}, 0), (-\frac{1}{3}, 0)
y-intercepts (0,0.289),(0,0.289)
(0, 0.289), (0, -0.289)
Eccentricity 0.502
0.502

Step-by-step explanation

Why learn this

If you cut a carrot in half across its grain (like this: =|> ) the resulting cross-section would be circular and, therefore, somewhat easy to measure. But what if you cut the same carrot across the grain at an angle (like this: =/> )? The resulting shape would be more of an ellipse and measuring it would prove to be a bit more difficult than measuring a plain old circle. But why would you need to measure the cross section of a carrot to begin with?
Well... you probably would not, but such occurrences of ellipses in nature are actually quite common, and understanding them from a mathematical perspective can be useful in many different contexts. Fields such as art, design, architecture, engineering, and astronomy all rely at times on ellipses - from painting portraits, to building homes, to measuring the orbit of moons, planets, and comets.

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