Scribd
Upload
91 views2 pages

4 Brahmagupta's Theorem

This document discusses Brahmagupta's Theorem, which states that in a cyclic quadrilateral whose diagonals are perpendicular, the line through their intersection point perpendicular to one side bisects the opposite side. It provides a proof of this using angles and showing two angle pairs are equal, implying the intersection point is the midpoint.

Uploaded by

Adarsh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
91 views2 pages

4 Brahmagupta's Theorem

This document discusses Brahmagupta's Theorem, which states that in a cyclic quadrilateral whose diagonals are perpendicular, the line through their intersection point perpendicular to one side bisects the opposite side. It provides a proof of this using angles and showing two angle pairs are equal, implying the intersection point is the midpoint.

Uploaded by

Adarsh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Brahmagupta’s

ClassRoom
Theorem
M NARASIMHA MURTHY Theorem. In a cyclic quadrilateral whose diagonals are
perpendicular to each other, the line through the point of
In this short note, we intersection of the diagonals which is perpendicular to one side
discuss a beautiful bisects the opposite side.
theorem first proved by
the great seventh century A

Indian mathematician
Brahmagupta—a theorem
about a cyclic quadrilateral.

H


 
E 
B D



G


Figure 1.

Figure 1 illustrates what this states. ABCD is a cyclic


quadrilateral; E is the point of intersection of diagonals AC
and BD. It is given that AC and BD are perpendicular to
each other. Through E, a line EG is drawn, perpendicular to
CD. It intersects AB at H. We must show that H is the
midpoint of AB, i.e., AH = HB.

Keywords: Brahmagupta, cyclic quadrilateral, Heron’s formula

Azim Premji University At Right Angles, November 2019 27


Proof. In Figure 2, let x denote CEG, and let y Therefore we have HEA = HAE, and
denote ECG. Then x and y must be HBE = HEB. It follows that HA = HE, and
complements of one another (i.e., they add up to a HE = HB. Hence HB = HA, i.e., H is the
right angle), since EGC is a right angle. Observe midpoint of AB, as was to be proved. 
that AEH = x (vertically opposite angles), and
ABD = y (using the “angles in the same Further remarks.
segment” theorem). Also, BAE is the
complement of ABD, since AEB is a right • The above proof is a nice illustration of the
angle. Since ABE = y, it follows that principle of transitivity: if a = b and b = c,
BAE = x. And since BEH is the complement then a = c.
of AEH, it must be that BEH = y. • Brahmagupta also showed that the area Δ of a
cyclic quadrilateral with given sides a, b, c, d is
A
 given by the following beautifully symmetric
formula:
√
Δ = (s − a)(s − b)(s − c)(s − d),
H where s = 12 (a + b + c + d) is the

semi-perimeter of the quadrilateral.
• The above formula reduces to a familiar
formula (‘Heron’s formula’) for the area of a
E triangle in the case when d = 0, i.e., one side
  
B D reduces to zero length (which means in effect
x
that the quadrilateral has collapsed into a
triangle).

y

G • Brahmagupta was the first mathematician to
C state explicitly the arithmetic rules for
operating with 0 and the rules for working
Figure 2. with negative numbers.

28 Azim Premji University At Right Angles, November 2019

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy