Section 8.4: Areas of Regular Polygons
An apothem is a perpendicular segment from the center of a regular polygon to one of the sides. When radii are drawn from the center to the vertices of the polygon, congruent isosceles triangles are formed with the polygon apothem as the height. These triangles are used in calculating the area of regular polygons. Related topics include properties ofisosceles triangles and area of triangles.
If radii are drawn from the center of a regular polygon to the vertices, congruent isosceles triangles are formed. Using the apothem as the height and the polygon side as the base, the area of each triangle can be calculated and summed. Therefore, the area regular polygons is equal to the number of triangles formed by the radii times their height: (side length)(apothem length)(number of sides)/2.
If radii are drawn from the center of a regular polygon to the vertices, congruent isosceles triangles are formed. Using the apothem as the height and the polygon side as the base, the area of each triangle can be calculated and summed. Therefore, the area regular polygons is equal to the number of triangles formed by the radii times their height: (side length)(apothem length)(number of sides)/2.
Notes and Powerpoints
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