play and relax: games for kids games
  Cut the knot: learn to enjoy mathematics
A math books store at a unique math study site. Learn to enjoy mathematics.
Google
Web CTK
Try our no ads browsing

Best sites for teachers
Sites for teachers
Sites for parents
Terms of use
Awards

Interactive Activities
CTK Exchange
CTK Insights - a blog

Games & Puzzles
What Is What
Arithmetic/Algebra
Geometry
Probability
Outline Mathematics
Make an Identity
Book Reviews
Eye Opener
Analog Gadgets
Inventor's Paradox
Did you know?...
Proofs
Math as Language
Things Impossible
Visual Illusions
My Logo
Math Poll
Cut The Knot!
MSET99 Talk
Other Math sites
Front Page
Movie shortcuts
Personal info
Privacy Policy

Guest book
News sites

Recommend this site

Best sites for teachers
Sites for teachers
Sites for parents

Education & Parenting

Manifesto: what CTK is about Buying a book is a commitment to learning Table of content Try our no ads browsing Things you can find on CTK Chronology of updates Email to Cut The Knot Recommend this page

Morley's Miracle
J.Conway's proof

John Conway (the inventor of the Game of Life) of Princeton University floated his proof on the geomtery.puzzles newsgroup in 1995. Following is his message (I only replaced his text-based graphics with something more decent and changed his notations to confirm with those I use in other proofs.)

I have the undisputedly simplest proof of Morley's Trisector Theorem. Here it is:

Let your triangle have angles 3a, 3b, 3c and let x* mean x +  60o, so that a + b + c = 0*. Then triangles with angles

 0*,0*,0* 
a,b*,c* a*,b,c* a*,b*,c
a**,b,c a,b**,c a,b,c**

exist abstractly, since in every case the angle-sum is 180o. Build them on a scale defined as follows:

0*,0*,0*-this is equilateral - make it have edge 1
a,b*,c*-make the edge joining the angles b* and c* have length 1
-similarly for a*,b,c* and a*,b*,c
a**,b,c (and the other two like it)-let me draw this one:

Let the angles at B, P, C be b, a**, c, and draw lines from P cutting BC at angle a* in the two senses, so forming an isosceles triangle PYZ. Choose the scale so that PY and PZ are both 1.

Now just fit all these 7 triangles together! They'll form a figure like:-

(in which the points X,Y should really be omitted). The points Y,Z are what I meant.

To make it a bit more clear, let me say that the angles of BPR are b (at B), c* (at P), a* (at R).

Why do they all fit together? Well, at each internal vertex, the angles add up to 360o, as you'll easily check. And two coincident edges have either both been declared to have length 1, or are like the common edge BP of triangles BPR and BPC.

But BPR is congruent to the subtriangle BPZ of BPC, since PR = PZ = 1, PBR = PBZ = b, and BRP = BZP = a*.

So the figure formed by these 7 triangles is similar to the one you get by trisecting the angles of your given triangle, and therefore in that triangle the middle subtriangle must also be equilateral.

     John Conway


Morley's Miracle

  1. J.Conway's proof
  2. D.J.Newman's proof
  3. Bankoff's proof
  4. Another proof
  5. Nikos Dergiades' proof
  6. G. Zsolt Kiss' proof
  7. M. T. Naraniengar's proof
  8. Doodling and Miracles
  9. Morley's Pursuit of Incidence
  10. Lines, Circles and Beyond
  11. On Motivation and Understanding
  12. Bankoff's Conundrum
  13. Morley's Redux and More, Alain Connes' proof
  14. An Unexpected Variant

Copyright © 1996-2008 Alexander Bogomolny

29797974Page copy protected against web site content infringement by Copyscape


Search:
Keywords:


Latest on CTK Exchange
try this puzzle ?/?? + ?/?? + ?/? ...
Posted by albert1950
2 messages
03:40 PM, Aug-26-08

Numbers raised to the power of 0
Posted by Chris Tolley
20 messages
12:17 PM, Aug-25-08

Arbelos : 1) Geometrical Construc ...
Posted by Sundar Krishnan
12 messages
06:29 AM, Aug-12-08

k prisoners and k lightbulbs.
Posted by Randomer
0 messages
06:38 PM, Aug-30-08

Triangles With Equal Area
Posted by Bui Quang Tuan
5 messages
07:20 PM, Aug-26-08

difficult mathematics induction p ...
Posted by reidan
2 messages
09:18 PM, Sep-05-08

site questions
Posted by madisonv
2 messages
04:24 PM, Aug-26-08