Archimedes' Approximation of Pi
Main Concept
By increasing the number of sides in the polygon, the polygon's shape and area will approach that of a circle.
Explanation
The area of the n-sided polygon will be n times the area of one of its triangles.
Areapolygon
=
n⋅Areatriangle
where:
b is the base
h is the height
n⋅ b⋅h2
12⋅h⋅n⋅b
By rearranging the equation n⋅b represents the perimeter of the polygon. As n increases the perimeter of the polygon approaches the circumference of a circle.
≈
12⋅r⋅2⋅π⋅r
=
π⋅r2
Adjust slider to change the number of sides that the polygon has.
Number of sides:
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