EZ Math Movie, Tutorials, Mathematics, Tutorials

A bit of trigonometry

Very simply put, trigonometry is a math topic that is centered around certain functions of angles. We are not going to explain trigonometry here. We are going to explain how the trigonometric functions are used in EZ Math Movie.

We will look at three trig functions in EZ Math Movie: sine, cosine, and tangent.

The functions and angle measurement

By default, angles in EZ Math Movie are measured in degrees. So, if you wanted to take the sine of 30 degrees and place that value into x, it would code like this:

x = sine(30);

For the cosine and tangent it would look like this:

x = cosine(30);
x = tangent(30);

Note that in many math systems or calculators these functions are spelled 'sin', 'cos', and 'tan', each with their obvious meanings. In EZ Math Movie we use the complete words for these functions, mostly because here these functions work a bit differently than what is usually encountered. Here the trig functions by default accept degrees, and usual implementations of trigonometry do not. Often angles are measured in radians rather than degrees. You can do this in EZ Math Movie, too. Check out the 'Closing notes' sections within the tutorials.

Running the example program

The example program uses the variable angle as the argument to the trig functions. It is set to a certain number of degrees, and then the sine, cosine, and tangent of that angle are calculated. These values are then printed out.

The example program

// Start with a blank printer.
clearPrinter();

// Set the angle.
angle = 30;

// Take the sine, cosine, and tangent
// of the angle.
s = sine(angle);
c = cosine(angle);
t = tangent(angle);

// Output the sine.
print('The sine of ');
printNumber(angle);
print(' degrees is ');
printNumber(s);
print('.');

// Skip some lines.
printNewLine();
printNewLine();

// Output the cosine.
print('The cosine of ');
printNumber(angle);
print(' degrees is ');
printNumber(c);
print('.');

// Skip some lines.
printNewLine();
printNewLine();

// Output the tangent.
print('The tangent of ');
printNumber(angle);
print(' degrees is ');
printNumber(t);
print('.');

// Do this only once.
stop();

And....

Next tutorial: Other (mathematics)

Other sites you may find interesting

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