Write Up #6

by Keith Leatham


10. Construct the locus of points equidistant from a fixed point F and a circle. In other words,
repeat the parabola construction but use a circle as the "directrix." Let F be any point in the plane
other than the center of the circle. Assume F is not on the circle; it can be either inside or outside.

a. Use an Action Button to generate the parabola from an animation and trace of a
constructed point.

b. Repeat 10a with a trace of the tangent line at the constructed point.

c. Use the locus command to generated the parabola from a constructed point or the
tangent line at that point.

a. Point Generation of Locus--In this GSP document, moving point B will change the size of circle A, F is any point in the plane other than the center of the circle, and the point H constructs the locus we are looking for.

b. Tangent Line Generation of Locus--In this GSP document, line k outlines the locus.

c. Locus Command Generation of Locus--In the GSP document, the locus of points is automatically generated by the Locus command. Many different configurations can be seen by moving point F.

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