Projective range

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In mathematics, a projective range is a set of points in projective geometry considered in a unified fashion. A projective range may be a projective line or a conic. A projective range is the dual of a pencil of lines on a given point. For instance, a correlation interchanges the points of a projective range with the lines of a pencil. A projectivity is said to act from one range to another, though the two ranges may coincide as sets.

Mathematics Field of study concerning quantity, patterns and change

Mathematics includes the study of such topics as quantity, structure (algebra), space (geometry), and change. It has no generally accepted definition.

Projective geometry Type of geometry

Projective geometry is a topic in mathematics. It is the study of geometric properties that are invariant with respect to projective transformations. This means that, compared to elementary geometry, projective geometry has a different setting, projective space, and a selective set of basic geometric concepts. The basic intuitions are that projective space has more points than Euclidean space, for a given dimension, and that geometric transformations are permitted that transform the extra points to Euclidean points, and vice versa.

Real projective line

In geometry, a real projective line is an extension of the usual concept of line that has been historically introduced to solve a problem set by visual perspective: two parallel lines do not intersect but seem to intersect "at infinity". For solving this problem, points at infinity have been introduced, in such a way that in a real projective plane, two distinct projective lines meet in exactly one point. The set of these points at infinity, the "horizon" of the visual perspective in the plane, is a real projective line. It is the circle of directions emanating from an observer situated at any point, with opposite points identified. A model of the real projective line is the projectively extended real line. Drawing a line to represent the horizon in visual perspective, an additional point at infinity is added to represent the collection of lines parallel to the horizon.

A projective range expresses projective invariance of the relation of projective harmonic conjugates. Indeed, three points on a projective line determine a fourth by this relation. Application of a projectivity to this quadruple results in four points likewise in the harmonic relation. Such a quadruple of points is termed a harmonic range. In 1940 Julian Coolidge described this structure and identified its originator: [1]

Projective harmonic conjugate

In projective geometry, the harmonic conjugate point of an ordered triple of points on the real projective line is defined by the following construction:

Julian Coolidge American mathematician and a professor and chairman of the Harvard University Mathematics Department

Julian Lowell Coolidge was an American mathematician, historian and a professor and chairman of the Harvard University Mathematics Department.

Two fundamental one-dimensional forms such as point ranges, pencils of lines, or of planes are defined as projective, when their members are in one-to-one correspondence, and a harmonic set of one ... corresponds to a harmonic set of the other. ... If two one-dimensional forms are connected by a train of projections and intersections, harmonic elements will correspond to harmonic elements, and they are projective in the sense of Von Staudt.

Conic ranges

When a conic is chosen for a projective range, and a particular point E on the conic is selected as origin, then addition of points may be defined as follows: [2]

Let A and B be in the range (conic) and AB the line connecting them. Let L be the line through E and parallel to AB. The "sum of points A and B", A + B, is the intersection of L with the range.[ citation needed ]

The circle and hyperbola are instances of a conic and the summation of angles on either can be generated by the method of "sum of points", provided points are associated with angles on the circle and hyperbolic angles on the hyperbola.

Circle simple curve of Euclidean geometry

A circle is a shape consisting of all points in a plane that are a given distance from a given point, the centre; equivalently it is the curve traced out by a point that moves in a plane so that its distance from a given point is constant. The distance between any point of the circle and the centre is called the radius. This article is about circles in Euclidean geometry, and, in particular, the Euclidean plane, except where otherwise noted.

Hyperbola Plane curve: conic section

In mathematics, a hyperbola is a type of smooth curve lying in a plane, defined by its geometric properties or by equations for which it is the solution set. A hyperbola has two pieces, called connected components or branches, that are mirror images of each other and resemble two infinite bows. The hyperbola is one of the three kinds of conic section, formed by the intersection of a plane and a double cone. If the plane intersects both halves of the double cone but does not pass through the apex of the cones, then the conic is a hyperbola.

Angle an angle is something that is formed when two rays meet at a single or same point

In plane geometry, an angle is the figure formed by two rays, called the sides of the angle, sharing a common endpoint, called the vertex of the angle. Angles formed by two rays lie in a plane, but this plane does not have to be a Euclidean plane. Angles are also formed by the intersection of two planes in Euclidean and other spaces. These are called dihedral angles. Angles formed by the intersection of two curves in a plane are defined as the angle determined by the tangent rays at the point of intersection. Similar statements hold in space, for example, the spherical angle formed by two great circles on a sphere is the dihedral angle between the planes determined by the great circles.

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Analytic geometry Study of geometry using a coordinate system

In classical mathematics, analytic geometry, also known as coordinate geometry or Cartesian geometry, is the study of geometry using a coordinate system. This contrasts with synthetic geometry.

Perpendicular Relationship between two lines that meet at a right angle (90 degrees)

In elementary geometry, the property of being perpendicular (perpendicularity) is the relationship between two lines which meet at a right angle. The property extends to other related geometric objects.

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In algebraic geometry and computational geometry, general position is a notion of genericity for a set of points, or other geometric objects. It means the general case situation, as opposed to some more special or coincidental cases that are possible, which is referred to as special position. Its precise meaning differs in different settings.

In geometry, a degenerate conic is a conic that fails to be an irreducible curve. This means that the defining equation is factorable over the complex numbers as the product of two linear polynomials.

Locus (mathematics) set of points whose location satisfies or is determined by one or more specified conditions

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Cubic plane curve curve defined in projective plane by a cubic homogeneous polynomial

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Pascals theorem theorem

In projective geometry, Pascal's theorem states that if six arbitrary points are chosen on a conic and joined by line segments in any order to form a hexagon, then the three pairs of opposite sides of the hexagon meet at three points which lie on a straight line, called the Pascal line of the hexagon. It is named after Blaise Pascal.

Focus (geometry) fixed reference point; special points with reference to which any of a variety of curves is constructed

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Hyperbolic angle

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Complete quadrangle four points that determine six distinct lines

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Cayley–Bacharach theorem

In mathematics, the Cayley–Bacharach theorem is a statement about cubic curves in the projective plane P2. The original form states:

Apollonian circles a circle can be defined as the set of points in a plane that have a specified ratio of distances to two fixed points

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Conic section curve obtained as the intersection of a cone with a plane; are formed by cross-sections of a cone at various different angles

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Unit hyperbola

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The terminology of algebraic geometry changed drastically during the twentieth century, with the introduction of the general methods, initiated by David Hilbert and the Italian school of algebraic geometry in the beginning of the century, and later formalized by André Weil, Jean-Pierre Serre and Alexander Grothendieck. Much of the classical terminology, mainly based on case study, was simply abandoned, with the result that books and papers written before this time can be hard to read. This article lists some of this classical terminology, and describes some of the changes in conventions.

References

  1. J. L. Coolidge (1940) A History of Geometrical Methods, page 98, Oxford University Press (Dover Publications 2003)
  2. Viktor Prasolov & Yuri Solovyev (1997) Elliptic Functions and Elliptic Integrals, page one, Translations of Mathematical Monographs volume 170, American Mathematical Society

The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian scholarly publisher and book distributor founded in 1901.