Tangent to a Circle?

[Mark Hancock]

At what age would you expect a youngster to know what a tangent is?

 

[wizer]

I'm guessing 29 :lol:

 

[Tom K]

Probably something a ten year old would know.
Guess it would be after learning about circumference, diameter
and radii etc but may be discussed in the literary sense earlier.
My nearly seven year old Grand daughter certainly wouldn't know.

 

[bugbear]

I'm guessing 29 :lol:

I'm guessing half the population don't know - regardless of age.

BugBear (who despairs)

 

[RogerS]

Do they even teach geometry these days ?

 

[wizer]

come on then, explain to the dunce

 

[Blister]

At what age would you expect a youngster to know what a tangent is?

53 :lol: :lol:

 

[Terry Smart]

The correct answer to this is after they've been taught about it at school...

Although strangely enough I have very clear memories of this coming up in a homework question when I was 13 and I didn't have a clue what it meant. I was sure it hadn't been taught at school so I asked my parents and even my neighbours and they didn't either. I wasted a considerable amount of time trying to sort that one out and when I spoke to my friends at school after the weekend they'd had as much trouble as me.
So maybe my opening statement is flawed...

As I recall, the dictionary entry was so complicated as to be no help whatsoever.

 

[wizer]

I read this

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangent

and can't say I fully understood

 

[Tom K]

This page is more relevant Tom

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangent_lines_to_circles

Think the OP was refering to the basic concept a line that intersects a circle at one point, as I remember it just a line that touches the outer circumference at one point

 

[jasonB]

If you ask someone on the street what a tan-gent was they would say David Dickenson or Dale Winton :lol:

J

 

[xraymtb]

It was taught to me in High School at around 15-16 (although that was in the 'Credit' class - I'm not sure those in the 'General' of 'Foundation' class were taught it at any point).

 

[CHJ]

I was certainly aware of the concept of a tangent at about 12 because of its use in constructing shapes in art class, I know my grandchildren are/were aware of it as a concept in the 10-11 age but I suspect it is only the 16 yr old that has any knowledge of it in a mathematical sense, (he's aiming at architectural qualifications).

I first had to use it as a mathematical concept at age 15 (log table and slide rule hell)

I guess in these days of the enlightened rush for the more easily attributed bits of paper and the lack of practical technical drawing-metalwork-woodwork-basic artwork subjects there is no point at which basic geometry gets covered.

So bottom line, I'm not surprised if your class members don't have the concept Mark. my daughter has similar frustrations with her college students.

 

[wizer]

I read Tom's link and I'm still not fully aware of what it is. So let's try it another way.

What relevance does this have in either my life or woodworking?

 

[John. B]

A What #-o

 

[PowerTool]

Learnt it at school when probably about 10 (but was always in the top class for maths)

Prefer Jasons definition,though :wink:

Andrew

 

[Grinding One]

I remember a Teacher saying "There you go off on a Tangent again" But I had it in drafting class 10 grade.

 

[SketchUp Guru]

I read Tom's link and I'm still not fully aware of what it is. So let's try it another way.

What relevance does this have in either my life or woodworking?

I just finished up plans for a workbench that will be published next week. The apron on the front of the bench has some dog holes to use for a support or holdfast. The top of these holes are on a horizontal line tangent to the top of the steel dowel pins installed with the Veritas Twin Screw Vise. If you know what a tangent is, you need know nothing more about the vertical location of those holes.

 

[Jenx]

I'd have guessed at around 11 ish ?

Once the child starts into looking at Geometry or 'Art & Design Class' etc ...
i.e. the commencement of secondary school ( "ish",.. give or take a year either way ? )

 

[jasonB]

What relevance does this have in either my life or woodworking?

When you make things like this, this and this you will discover the relevance of tangents, how to bisect lines and angles, properties of triangles and trigonomatry. In fact any work with curves/circles will likely involve tangents even if you dont realise it.

And the ruler trick to find the center of a cylinder when cross drilling is a clasic example of the theory in practice

I think I learnt it at about 12, certainly knew it at 15-16 when I took O level tech drawing and building construction drawing, they were both in two papers, one of which was all geometry, got two As

Jason