Cartesian Coordinates
Cartesian coordinates can be used to pinpoint where we are on a map or graph.
Cartesian Coordinates
Using Cartesian Coordinates we mark a point on a graph by how far along and how far up it
is:
10 y
12
5
(12,5)
5
0
0 5 10 15 x
The point (12,5) is 12 units along, and 5 units up.
10 y
They are also called Rectangular Coordinates 12
because it is like we are forming a rectangle. (12,5)
5
5
0
0 5 10 15 x
X and Y Axis
x The left-right (horizontal) direction is commonly called X.
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y
2
1
x ... and we are ready to go
0
0 1 2 3
Example:
y Point (6,4) is
6
6 units across (in the x direction), and
5
4
(6,4)
3
2 4 units up (in the y direction)
1
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 x
So (6,4) means:
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Play With It !
Now is a good time to play with
-10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 9 10
8
7
6
5
4
3
1 2
0
-10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
-10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1
-10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Direction
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Writing Coordinates
The coordinates are always written in a certain order:
And usually the numbers are separated by a comma, and parentheses are put around the whole
thing like this:
(3,2)
Example: (3,2) means 3 units to the right, and 2 units up
The Origin
The point (0,0) is given the special name "The Origin", and is sometimes given the letter "O".
Abscissa: the horizontal ("x") value in a pair of coordinates: how far along the point is
Ordinate: the vertical ("y") value in a pair of coordinates: how far up or down the point is
"Cartesian" ... ?
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They are called Cartesian because the idea was developed by the
mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes who was also known as
Cartesius.
go backwards for x
(-6,4) (6,4)
go down for y
(-6,-4) (6,-4)
-y And (-6,-4) means:
go back along the x axis 6 then go down 4.
y
II I
Four Quadrants -x x
When we include negative values, the x and y axes divide the space III IV
up into 4 pieces: -y
Quadrants I, II, III and IV
Like this:
X Y
Quadrant Example
(horizontal) (vertical)
II Negative Positive
IV Positive Negative
Example: The point "A" (3,2) is 3 units along, and 2 units up.
Example: The point "C" (-2,-1) is 2 units along in the negative direction, and 1 unit down
(i.e. negative direction).
Note: The word Quadrant comes form quad meaning four. For example,
four babies born at one birth are called quadruplets, a four-legged animal is
a quadruped. and a quadrilateral is a four-sided polygon.
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1 left-right
left-right, and
2 up-down
How do we locate a spot in the real world (such as the tip of your nose)?
We need to know:
left-right,
3 up-down, and
forward-backward,
3 Dimensions
Cartesian coordinates can be used for locating points in 3 dimensions as in this example:
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y
(2, 4, 5)
x
(0,0,0)
z
In fact, this idea can be continued into four dimensions and more - I just can't work out how to
illustrate that for you!
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