How to find cotangent on unit circle?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking how to find the cotangent of an angle using the unit circle. The cotangent function is defined as the ratio of the adjacent side to the opposite side in a right triangle, which corresponds to the coordinates on the unit circle.
Answer
Divide cos(theta) by sin(theta).
To find cotangent on the unit circle, use the formula cot(theta) = cos(theta) / sin(theta) with the corresponding coordinates.
Answer for screen readers
To find cotangent on the unit circle, use the formula cot(theta) = cos(theta) / sin(theta) with the corresponding coordinates.
More Information
Cotangent is the reciprocal of the tangent function. Therefore, it can be found through the relationship cot(theta) = 1/tan(theta) as well, but using cos(theta)/sin(theta) is more straightforward from the unit circle.
Tips
A common mistake is forgetting the signs of the cosine or sine values, especially in different quadrants of the unit circle. Always pay attention to the sign based on the quadrant.
Sources
- Cotangent Formula - cuemath.com
