Conic Sections

Explore the conic sections and graph using a computer.

Scope and Sequence

Tenth Grade: Integrated
Patterns and Relationships #1: Explore the conic sections and graph using a graphing calculator or computer.
Patterns and Relationships #3: Discover general relationships between the algebraic description of a conic, the kind of conic, and special properties of that conic.

There are 4 basic conic sections. Can you find them all?

Find a website/websites to learn about conic sections.
For each conic section you will need to:

a.) Print the graph or provide a scaled drawing on graph paper.

b.) Find the standard form of the equation for each of the 4 conic sections.

c.) Each section's equation contains the letters h and k, tell me what these letters represent.

d.) Some of these equations contain other letters such as a, b, c, r, or p. Tell me what these letters represent.

e.) Conic sections were first studied in Ancient Greece sometime between 600 and 300 B.C. The Greeks were largely concerned with the properties, not the applications, of conics. In the seventeenth century, applications of conics became prominent in the development of calculus. Tell me how the study of conic sections can be used in real - world applications today.

In order to get full credit, you must have all 4 conic sections identified by:

1.) Graph

2.) Standard form of equation

3.) Identify the meaning of all letters in the equation.

**Also, you must answer part e with at least 5 sentences on applications of conics in the real - world today.