Mathematics 32A - Sample Questions for Midterm 1

Exam Date May 1st, 2013 Instructor: D.E.Weisbart

Problem 1.

Find the shortest distance between the lines parameterized by (1 + s, 2, 3 s) and (0, 1 + 2t, 3 + t).

Find the vector equation for the line through the point P = (1, 3, 2) that is parallel to the line of intersection of the planes x y + z = 1 and x + y z = 1.

Problem 2.

Problem 3.

Suppose that a and b are vectors. Show that a and b proja b are orthogonal. Give an example of this fact for two non-parallel vectors in R2 .

Problem 4.
x y + z = 1.

Calculate the cosine of the angle between the planes x + y + z = 1 and

Problem 5.

Find the (arc-length) parameterization of the line x(t) = 2 + 4t, y (t) = 1 12t, z (t) = 3 + 3t in terms of the arc length parameter s measured from the initial point (2, 1, 3).

Problem 6.
2

What is the equation of the osculating circle that intersects the parabola {(x, x ) : x R} at the point (0, 0)? Find an arc length parameterization of this circle.

Problem 7.

Let O be the center of a circle of radius R. Let P be a point on the circle. Show that the line tangent to a circle P is perpendicular to the line OP .

Problem 8.

A hunter shoots a rie whose bullets travel at 2000 feet per second. He takes aim at a crazy little monkey sitting on a tree branch. The hunter is one foot higher than the monkey and aims straight thinking that the bullet will drop and hit the monkey directly in the heart. The monkey stands exactly 1.5 feet tall, is very curious, is very clever, and has a keen awareness of spacial relationships. The monkey knows the bullet will fall below his feet and laughs hysterically at the hunter as he res his gun. He then swings o and disappears into the forest. At least how far away was the hunter when he red?

Find the area bounded by the parallelogram with vertices (0, 0), (2, 1), (3, 1), (5, 0). Where do the diagonals of the parallelogram intersect? Can you show that the diagonals are perpendicular? Is this true in general?

Problem 9.

Problem 10.

Is it possible to travel on a circular path and experience tangential acceleration? If yes, explain how this would occur by giving an example. In this example you should calculate both the tangential and centripetal acceleration and show that both are nonzero. Is it possible to travel along a circular path and experience no centripetal acceleration?