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The vertex of a parabola is the place where it turns; hence, it is also called the turning point. If the quadratic function is in vertex form, the vertex is (h, k). Using the method of completing the square, one can turn the standard form = + + into
On a parabola, the sole vertex lies on the axis of symmetry and in a quadratic of the form: a x 2 + b x + c {\displaystyle ax^{2}+bx+c\,\!} it can be found by completing the square or by differentiation . [ 2 ]
If the chord has length b and is perpendicular to the parabola's axis of symmetry, and if the perpendicular distance from the parabola's vertex to the chord is h, the parallelogram is a rectangle, with sides of b and h. The area A of the parabolic segment enclosed by the parabola and the chord is therefore =.
If the parabola's vertex is on the -axis, then the corresponding equation has a single repeated root on the line of symmetry, and this distance term is zero; algebraically, the discriminant = .
If a < 0, the parabola has a maximum point and opens downward. The extreme point of the parabola, whether minimum or maximum, corresponds to its vertex. The x-coordinate of the vertex will be located at =, and the y-coordinate of the vertex may be found by substituting this x-value into the function.
Given a quadratic polynomial of the form + the numbers h and k may be interpreted as the Cartesian coordinates of the vertex (or stationary point) of the parabola. That is, h is the x -coordinate of the axis of symmetry (i.e. the axis of symmetry has equation x = h ), and k is the minimum value (or maximum value, if a < 0) of the quadratic ...
The type of the conic is determined by the type of cone, that is, by the angle formed at the vertex of the cone: If the angle is acute then the conic is an ellipse; if the angle is right then the conic is a parabola; and if the angle is obtuse then the conic is a hyperbola (but only one branch of the curve).
A parabolic segment is the region bounded by a parabola and line. To find the area of a parabolic segment, Archimedes considers a certain inscribed triangle. The base of this triangle is the given chord of the parabola, and the third vertex is the point on the parabola such that the tangent to the parabola at that point is parallel to the chord.