Introduction to Polar Coordinates
[caption id="attachment_25281" align="alignright" width="403"] Polar rose: r = 2 sin (4*θ)[/caption]Frequently used in analytical geometry is the standard 2-dimensional x, y coordinate system called the Cartesian coordinate system (named after famous mathematician, René Descartes). It's time to branch out to a different system, the polar coordinates system. In fact, there are any of a number of ways of locating points in 2-D space. Conversion from Cartesian Coordinates The polar coordinates system utilizes an angle and a radius. It is relatively simple to change from the x-y system to an r-θ system. Drawing a circle centered at the origin on an x-y plane and then drawing a right triangle with the radius of the circle equaling r, then by definition, the side adjacent to the angle divided by the hypotenuse (longest…