directrix

14
Jan
Parabolic Beams

Parabolic Beams

I love thinking of parabolas as being formed with a directrix and focus. Coming from a background in trajectory analysis, I find the abstract relationships of the curve to the point and line beautiful. When a light shines through the focus of a parabolic mirror, the light reflected is orthogonal to
1 min read
24
Sep

SA9: Quadrant Play

This Scripting Algebra (SA) activity looks at quadrants, mouse location, and interactive art p5.js. This activity assumes that the skills from SA1-SA8 were introduced (if-else, logical operators, random(), text(), rect(), variables, loop, pow, for, functions, translate, modulo, etc.). This activity
1 min read
25
Aug
SA8: Odd and Even

SA8: Odd and Even

This Scripting Algebra (SA) activity uses even and odd polynomials to create generative art in p5.js. This activity assumes that the skills from SA1-SA7 were introduced (if-else, logical operators, random(), text(), rect(), variables, loop, pow, for, functions, translate etc.). This activity will in
2 min read
22
Aug
SA7: Directrix and Focus

SA7: Directrix and Focus

This Scripting Algebra (SA) activity uses parabolas again to make generative art in p5.js. In SA6, we used the f(x) = ax2+bx+c form for parabolas. In SA7, we are going to take a look at the directrix and focus by using the form: (x-h)2 = 4p(y-k). This is one of my favorite ways to look […]
2 min read

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Sophia

Mathematics educator and creative coder exploring the beauty of mathematical concepts through interactive visualizations and playful learning.

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