How could you describe the sine function?

Answer 1

You may have to draw this to understand the Sine function for a right triangle (degree mode on a calculator).

Draw a right triangle. Choose either angle (not the right angle, < div> C)) which will be referred to as < (Angle

The "Hypotenuse" is the longest side (IE. the side opposite

Sine is a function used so that if you know the Hypotenuse or the Opposite side's length, and the angle, you can find the one you do not have.

Sine(A) = Opposite/Hypotenuse. No, that does not mean all you have to do is divide the two. You have put in your calculator (yes, you need a calculator for this. It's impossible without it. Sine is sin on a calculator.) sin(A) = Opposite/Hypotenuse. On paper, it's Sine(A) = O/H. You replace the one you do not know as X.

Example if the Hypotenuse is 32 and

Now, if you know both the Opposite and the Hypotenuse but not the angle measure, use the inverse of Sine. O = 29.44. H=32. The answer should be close to 64. On paper, Sine-1= 27.44/32. On the calculator, sin-1(29.44/32) which equals 66.93. Very close. If you actually use the exact number, it will be exact. But that is almost impossible as the numbers are usually irrational. So an estimate is tolerable.

In a right triangle, the sine of an angle is the ratio of the opposite side to the hypotenuse. However, this only restricts the domain to (0, pi/2). Sine is actually defined using a unit circle. For a given point on the unit circle, the sine of that angle is the y-coordinate of that point, and the cosine of that angle is the x-coordinate.

Because of the periodic nature of the sine wave (after once around the unit circle, it repeats), it can be used to describe waves, such as sound waves, light waves, etc.