Neusis constructionIn geometry, the neusis (νεῦσις; ; plural: neuseis) is a geometric construction method that was used in antiquity by Greek mathematicians. The neusis construction consists of fitting a line element of given length (a) in between two given lines (l and m), in such a way that the line element, or its extension, passes through a given point P. That is, one end of the line element has to lie on l, the other end on m, while the line element is "inclined" towards P.
Petrie polygonIn geometry, a Petrie polygon for a regular polytope of n dimensions is a skew polygon in which every n – 1 consecutive sides (but no n) belongs to one of the facets. The Petrie polygon of a regular polygon is the regular polygon itself; that of a regular polyhedron is a skew polygon such that every two consecutive sides (but no three) belongs to one of the faces. Petrie polygons are named for mathematician John Flinders Petrie.
TriacontagonIn geometry, a triacontagon or 30-gon is a thirty-sided polygon. The sum of any triacontagon's interior angles is 5040 degrees. The regular triacontagon is a constructible polygon, by an edge-bisection of a regular pentadecagon, and can also be constructed as a truncated pentadecagon, t{15}. A truncated triacontagon, t{30}, is a hexacontagon, {60}. One interior angle in a regular triacontagon is 168 degrees, meaning that one exterior angle would be 12°.
HeptadecagonIn geometry, a heptadecagon, septadecagon or 17-gon is a seventeen-sided polygon. A regular heptadecagon is represented by the Schläfli symbol {17}. As 17 is a Fermat prime, the regular heptadecagon is a constructible polygon (that is, one that can be constructed using a compass and unmarked straightedge): this was shown by Carl Friedrich Gauss in 1796 at the age of 19. This proof represented the first progress in regular polygon construction in over 2000 years.
PentagonIn geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε pente meaning five and γωνία gonia meaning angle) is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simple or self-intersecting. A self-intersecting regular pentagon (or star pentagon) is called a pentagram. A regular pentagon has Schläfli symbol {5} and interior angles of 108°. A regular pentagon has five lines of reflectional symmetry, and rotational symmetry of order 5 (through 72°, 144°, 216° and 288°).
Fermat numberIn mathematics, a Fermat number, named after Pierre de Fermat, the first known to have studied them, is a positive integer of the form where n is a non-negative integer. The first few Fermat numbers are: 3, 5, 17, 257, 65537, 4294967297, 18446744073709551617, ... . If 2k + 1 is prime and k > 0, then k itself must be a power of 2, so 2k + 1 is a Fermat number; such primes are called Fermat primes. , the only known Fermat primes are F0 = 3, F1 = 5, F2 = 17, F3 = 257, and F4 = 65537 ; heuristics suggest that there are no more.
Constructible polygonIn mathematics, a constructible polygon is a regular polygon that can be constructed with compass and straightedge. For example, a regular pentagon is constructible with compass and straightedge while a regular heptagon is not. There are infinitely many constructible polygons, but only 31 with an odd number of sides are known. Some regular polygons are easy to construct with compass and straightedge; others are not.
GeometryGeometry (; ) is a branch of mathematics concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. Geometry is, along with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is called a geometer. Until the 19th century, geometry was almost exclusively devoted to Euclidean geometry, which includes the notions of point, line, plane, distance, angle, surface, and curve, as fundamental concepts.
Straightedge and compass constructionIn geometry, straightedge-and-compass construction – also known as ruler-and-compass construction, Euclidean construction, or classical construction – is the construction of lengths, angles, and other geometric figures using only an idealized ruler and a pair of compasses. The idealized ruler, known as a straightedge, is assumed to be infinite in length, have only one edge, and no markings on it. The compass is assumed to have no maximum or minimum radius, and is assumed to "collapse" when lifted from the page, so may not be directly used to transfer distances.
Regular polygonIn Euclidean geometry, a regular polygon is a polygon that is direct equiangular (all angles are equal in measure) and equilateral (all sides have the same length). Regular polygons may be either convex, star or skew. In the limit, a sequence of regular polygons with an increasing number of sides approximates a circle, if the perimeter or area is fixed, or a regular apeirogon (effectively a straight line), if the edge length is fixed. These properties apply to all regular polygons, whether convex or star.