ATAR Notes: Forum

VCE Stuff => VCE Mathematics => VCE Mathematics/Science/Technology => VCE Subjects + Help => VCE Specialist Mathematics => Topic started by: asdfqwerty on April 20, 2014, 10:52:04 am

Title: Tips
Post by: asdfqwerty on April 20, 2014, 10:52:04 am

does anyone have any tips to remember the complementary properties:
eg. tan (pi/2 - a) = cot (a) ?

thank you

Title: Re: Tips
Post by: keltingmeith on April 20, 2014, 12:05:04 pm

I like to think of it in terms of graphs.

For example, if you take y = sin(x) and move it over pi/2 to the right, what do you get? The graph for y = -cos(x). So, sin(x - pi/2) = -cos(x)

Title: Re: Tips
Post by: lzxnl on April 20, 2014, 06:21:39 pm

Quote from: asdfqwerty on April 20, 2014, 10:52:04 am

does anyone have any tips to remember the complementary properties:
eg. tan (pi/2 - a) = cot (a) ?

thank you

cotangent = complementary tangent
i.e. cot is tangent of complementary angle
complementary angle + angle = 90 degrees

same with sines and secants