Verify the identity

PanTh3R

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Feb 21, 2010
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Verify the Identity:

\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec{\theta}-1}{1-\cos{\theta}} = \sec\theta\)

i did... \(\displaystyle \frac{\sec{\theta}-1}{1-\cos{\theta}}*\frac{1+\cos{\theta}}{1+\cos{\theta}}\)

\(\displaystyle \frac{(\sec\theta-1)(1+\cos\theta)}{1-\cos^2\theta}\)


\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec\theta+\sec\theta\cos\theta-1-\cos\theta}{\sin^2\theta}\)

and now im stuck i think i did the first steps right...can any one help please?
 
PanTh3R said:
Verify the Identity:

\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec{\theta}-1}{1-\cos{\theta}} = \cos\theta\) This is not an identity.

Did you make a typographical error?

We can get an identity, if we change the righthand side to the secant of theta.

\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec{\theta}-1}{1-\cos{\theta}} = \sec{\theta}\)

You arrived at the following.

\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec\theta+\sec\theta\cos\theta-1-\cos\theta}{\sin^2\theta}\)

As soon as we think of sec(?) as 1/cos(?), it's an easy step to simplify sec(?) cos(?) - 1, in the numerator above.

Then subtract cos(?) from sec(?), in the resulting numerator. From there, it's just a compound ratio simplification.

The entire verification of this identity is about three steps, if the first step is restating the secant functions in terms of cosine. 8-)

\(\displaystyle \frac{\sec{\theta}-1}{1-\cos{\theta}} = \sec{\theta}\)

\(\displaystyle \frac{\frac{1}{cos\theta} - \frac{cos\theta}{cos\theta}}{1 - cos\theta} = \frac{1}{cos\theta}\)

\(\displaystyle \frac{\frac{1 - cos\theta}{cos\theta}}{1 - cos\theta} = \frac{1}{cos\theta}\)

\(\displaystyle \frac{1 - cos\theta}{cos\theta} \cdot \frac{1}{1 - cos\theta} = \frac{1}{cos\theta}\)

:idea: Several identities that involve secant, cosecant, and sometimes tangent and cotangent, can be verified more easily by first restating everything in terms of sine and cosine.
 
Hello, PanTh3R!

mmm444bot is right . . . There is a typo.


\(\displaystyle \text{Verify the Identity: }\;\frac{\sec\theta - 1}{1 - \cos\theta} \;=\;\boxed{\sec\theta}\)

\(\displaystyle \text{We have: }\;\frac{\sec\theta - 1}{1 - \frac{1}{\sec\theta}}\)

\(\displaystyle \text{Multiply by }\frac{\sec\theta}{\sec\theta}\!:\;\;\frac{\sec\theta(\sec\theta - 1)}{\sec\theta\left(1 - \frac{1}{\sec\theta}\right)} \;=\;\frac{\sec\theta(\sec\theta -1)}{\sec\theta - 1} \;=\; \sec\theta\)

 
wow i did make a typo error it was sec(theta) :oops: thanks for helping me :mrgreen:
 
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