conic section

- is a special class of curves.

-illustrated with the use of a plane and a twon-napped one

-consists of 4 general shapes:

PARABOLA

-have a u-shape

-used to model the flights of projectiles

CIRCLE

-have a ring shape

-is a mathematically perfect way to occupy space with a minimum of surface area.

ELLIPSES

-have a stretched ring shape

-used to model the path of planets, satellites, and comets as they course through the cosmos.

HYPERBOLAS

-have two branches.