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The “circle” of Apollonius in hyperbolic geometry. (English) Zbl 1395.51018

Summary: In Euclidean geometry, the circle of Apollonius is the locus of points in the plane from which two collinear adjacent segments are perceived as having the same length. In Hyperbolic geometry, the analog of this locus is an algebraic curve of degree four which can be bounded or “unbounded”. We study this locus and give a simple description of this curve using the Poincaré half-plane model. In the end, we give the motivation of our investigation and calculate the probability that three collinear adjacent segments can be seen as of the same positive length under some natural assumptions about the setting of the randomness considered.

MSC:

51M09 Elementary problems in hyperbolic and elliptic geometries

References:

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[2] J. W. Anderson, Hyperbolic Geometry, 2nd ed.-Springer undergraduate mathematics series, Springer-Verlag London Limited, 2005. · Zbl 1077.51008
[3] B. Hopkins, ed., Resources for Teaching Discrete Mathematics, Mathematical Association of America, Washington DC, 2009. · Zbl 1163.00004
[4] M. E. Kidwell and M. D. Meyerson, Problem 11915, Amer. Math. Monthly, 123 (2016) 613; solution, 125 (2018) 467–468.
[5] C. S. Ogilvy, Excursions in Geometry, New York: Dover, pp. 14-23, 1990. Eugen J. Ionas¸cu: Mathematics Department, Columbus State University, Columbus, Georgia 31907, USA E-mail address: math@ejionascu.ro · Zbl 0768.51001
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