Solutions to 18.

02 Midterm #1
1. Consider the three points A = (1, 0, 1), B = (2, 1, 1) and C = (2, 2, 2).

(a) Find the angle between vectors AB and AC.

We first find:

AB = (2, 1, 1) (1, 0, 1) = (1, 1, 0)

AC = (2, 2, 2) (1, 0, 1) = (1, 2, 1)

We then use the dot product; writing for the desired angle:


AB AC = |AB| |AC| cos

3 = 2 6 cos

3
3
cos = =
2
2 6

=
6
(b) Find the area of the triangle with points A, B, and C as vertices.
We use the cross product:


 i j k 



AB AC =  1 1 0 
 1 2 1 






 1 0 
 1 0 
 1 1 





 k

=
i
j+
2 1 
1 1 
1 2 

= i j + k.
Consequently,
1
Area(ABC) = |AB AC|
2

3
=
2
(c) Find the plane containing all three points.
From part (b), the vector (1, 1, 1) is normal to our plane; the equation of our plane
is thus:
0 = (1, 1, 1) [(x, y, z) (1, 0, 1)]
= (1, 1, 1) (x 1, 0, z 1)
= (x 1) y + (z 1)
= xy+z2
1

(d) Calculate the angle between the normal to this plane and the normal to the plane
x + z = 0.
We want to find the angles between the vectors
~n1 = (1, 1, 1)
~n2 = (1, 0, 1).
As in part (a) we use the dot product; writing for the desired angle:
~n1 ~n2 = |~n1 | |~n2 | cos

2 = 3 2 cos

2
6
cos = =
3
3 2

6
= arccos
3
2. (a) Calculate the parametric equations of the line passing through points P0 = (1, 0, 1)
and P1 = (3, 1, 0). Use a parameter t to denote the position along the line and so
write x = x(t), y = y(t), z = z(t).

P0 P1 = (3, 1, 0) (1, 0, 1) = (2, 1, 1).

Thus,

(x(t), y(t), z(t)) = P0 + t P0 P1 = (1, 0, 1) + t (2, 1, 1) = (1 + 2t, t, 1 t)

(b) Find an expression for D(t), the distance of this line from the origin.
p
D(t) = (1 + 2t)2 + t2 + (1 t)2

= 6t2 + 2t + 2
(c) The minimum of D(t) will occur at the same point as the minimum of D(t)2 . So we
set
d
1
d
0 = [D(t)2 ] = (6t2 + 2t + 2) = 12t + 2 t = .
dt
dt
6
We can see this is a minimum since it is the only root of the derivative and D(t)
as t . The minimum distance is thus
r

  s  2
 
1
1
1
11
66
D
= 6
+2
+2=
=
6
6
6
6
6
And the corresponding point is

 
 


1
1
1
2 1 7
(x, y, z) = 1 + 2
, ,1
=
, ,
6
6
6
3 6 6
2

3. Consider the linear system:

y + 3z = 0
2x + z = 0
x + cy + 2z = 0
(a) Find the value of c for which the system has an infinite number of non-trivial solutions.
The system will have infinitely many non-trivial solutions when


 0 1 3 






 2 1 
 0 3 
1





 = 3 + 6c
0 =  2 0 1  = 
c=
c


1 2
2 1
2
 1 c 2 
(b) Calculate the inverse of the matrix:

0 1 3
A = 2 0 1 .
1 2 2
We first calculate the matrix

 0 1
 2 2


1 3
Minors = 
2 2

 1 3

 0 1

of













minors:


 2 1 


 1 2 


 0 3 


 1 2 


 0 3 


 2 1 


2 0 
1 2 


2 3
4


0 1 
4 3 1
=
1 2 
1 6 2

0 1 
2 0 

Then we flip signs in a checkerboard pattern:

2 3 4
Flip signs = 4 3 1 .
1
6 2
And then we transpose:

2 4
1
Transpose = 3 3 6 .
4
1 2
From (c) below, det A = 9; so to obtain the inverse, we just divide the above matrix
by 9:
2 4

1
9 9
9
1

Inverse = 3 3 32

4
1
2
9
9
9
3

(c) The volume is (using part (a)):

det A = 3 + 6c = 3 + 6(2) = 9
4. Consider the trajectory described as a function of time t: ~r(t) = t i + t2 j, t 0.
(a) Draw the trajectory. Calculate the velocity ~v and acceleration ~a vectors.
1

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

To find velocity and acceleration, we repeatedly differentiate:

~r(t) = (t, t2 )
~v (t) = (1, 2t)
~a(t) = (0, 2).
as functions of t.
(b) Calculate the unit tangent vector T and unit normal vector N


(1, 2t)
1
~v
2t

=p
T =
=
,
|~v |
1 + 4t2
1 + 4t2
12 + (2t)2




2t
1
0 1

N=
T =
,
1 0
1 + 4t2
1 + 4t2
(c) Calculate the curvature K of the trajectory.
|~v ~a|
|~v |3
|(1, 2t, 0) (0, 2, 0)|
=
|(1, 2t)|3

K=

2
(1 + 4t2 )3/2

(d) For what value of t is the radius of curvature R of the trajectory a minimum, and
what is its minimum value?
The radius of curvature
1
(1 + 4t2 )2/3
R=
=
K
2
4

is obviously increasing. It thus assumes its minimum value at

t=0
and that minimum value is
R(0) =

1
2

5. Consider and xy-coordinate system fixed in a park. At the center of the park, a merry-goround of radius R spins in a counterclockwise direction at a uniform angular speed . On
the merry-go-round there is a radial line drawn that is initially (at t = 0) aligned with the
x-axis, but that necessarily rotates with the system. At time t = 0, a child at the origin of
the merry-go-round (0, 0) starts to walk at a constant speed U along the radial line.
(a) Find the parametric equations for the trajectory of the child.
At time t the child is distance U t from the origin, and at angle t. Thus,
(x(t), y(t)) = (U t cos t, U t sin t)
(b) Find the velocity ~v and speed of the child.
d
[(U t cos t, U t sin t)]
dt
= (U cos t U t sin t, U sin t + U t cos t)

~v =

|~v |2 = (U cos t U t sin t)2 + (U sin t + U t cos t)2

= U 2 cos2 t 2U 2 t sin t cos t + U 2 2 t2 sin2 t
+ U 2 sin2 t + 2U 2 t sin t cos t + U 2 2 t2 cos2 t
= (U 2 + U 2 2 t2 )(cos2 t + sin2 t)
= U 2 (1 + 2 t2 )

speed = |~v | = U 1 + 2 t2
(c) Write the integral that expresses the total distance traced out by the child during her
walk to the edge of the merry-go-round. You need not evaluate the integral.
Since the childs radial velocity is U , the child reaches the edge of the merry-go-round
in time R/U . Thus
Z
total distance =
0

R/U

U 1 + 2 t2 dt