Table of Contents | Introduction | Home P l a n e G e o m e t r y An Adventure in Language and Logic based on CONGRUENT TRIANGLES 3Book I. Proposition 26WE HAVE SEEN TWO sufficient conditions for triangles to be congruent. The first, and the one on which the others logically depend, is Side-angle-side. The other is Side-side-side. We will now present the remaining condition, which is known popularly as A.S.A.: Angle-side-angle. There is no restriction, however, on which side. Therefore the theorem could also be called S.A.A.: PROPOSITION 26. THEOREM
Let ABC, DEF be two triangles in which angles B and C are equal respectively to angles E and F; The proof is not really difficult but it involves two cases; this one for when the adjoining sides BC, EF are equal, and another for when the sides opposite equal angles are equal: sides AB, DE; hence the proof is lengthy. Each case is proved by the indirect method, and rests ultimately on S.A.S. Here is the case in which the sides adjoining the equal angles are equal. We want to show that the two triangles are equal in all respects.
For the next case we have the same angles equal, but AB is equal to DE. We want to show that BC is equal to EF, in which case again we will have S.A.S. The proof will be left to the student; Problem 2c. Example 1. The straight line CD bisects the straight line AB at the point E. Angle B is equal to angle A. Prove that angle C is equal to angle D. Solution. Since AB intersects CD at E, the vertical angles BEC, AED are equal. (I. 15) And we are given that angle A is equal to angle B, and that side AE is equal to side EB, which are the sides between the equal angles. Therefore the remaining angle is equal to the remaining angle: angle C is equal to angle D. (A.S.A.)
Example 2. AB and CD are straight lines that intersect at E; Prove that CF is equal to BG. Solution. Since angle CFA is equal to angle BGD, then angle CFE is equal to angle BGE, because they are supplements of equal angles. (I. 13, Problem 6.) And angle FEC is equal to angle GEB, because they are vertical angles. Therefore angles CFE, FEC are equal to angles BGE, GEB respectively; and side CE is equal to side BE; (Hypothesis) therefore triangles CEF, BEG are congruent, (S.A.A.) and therefore CF is equal to BG. Please "turn" the page and do some Problems. or Continue on to the next proposition. Table of Contents | Introduction | Home Please make a donation to keep TheMathPage online. Copyright © 2006-2007 Lawrence Spector Questions or comments? E-mail: themathpage@nyc.rr.com |