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The circle and its cousins
Answers
For these problems, when you use your graphing calculator, be sure to use a square scale
(ZOOM SQUARE). Otherwise, the graphs will give a distorted picture.
1. What does the graph of x
2
+ y
2
= c look like? Choose a value for c and graph it on a
graphing calculator. Since the calculator only accepts equations in the form y = ..., you
need to solve for y first. NOTE: For a given y
2
, there are usually two values of y that are
possible--for example, if y
2
is 4, y could be 2 or -2. You need to graph two functions to
get all of x
2
+ y
2
= c on your graph.
The equation x
2
+ y
2
= c looks fairly simple--it has only one parameter, c. What if we add
other parameters?
2. What does the graph of (x - h)
2
+ (y - k)
2
= c look like? If necessary, choose values for
the parameters h, k, and c and graph the equation. (Again, youll need to solve for y and
use two equations.)
3. Solve the equation ax
2
+by
2
= c for y, giving two functions that can be graphed on a
graphing calculator. (Here and for the rest of the problems, assume a, b, and c are all
nonzero.)
Youre going to be making a lot of graphs of this equation, with different values for a, b, and
c. You may want to enter your equations to be graphed as they are, using the parameters A, B,
and C. Then, rather than changing the equations, you can just change the values stored into A, B,
and C. Some people find this easier to do, but others dont.
4. Here are some values for a, b, and c. For example, Set 6 is a = 4, b = 9, and c = 1.

Set 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
a 1 1 1 4 4 4 1 4
b 1 4 9 1 4 9 4 1
c 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 9
a. Graph ax
2
+by
2
= c for each set of values, then describe the result.
b. What effect do the values of a, b, and c appear to have on the graph?
5. Here are some more sets of values.

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JUL JUN JUL
15
2003 2007 2008
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Set 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
a 1 1 1 4 4 4 1 4
b -1 -4 -9 -1 -4 -9 -4 -1
c 1 1 1 1 1 1 4 9
a. How are the values in these sets different from the values in the sets from
problem 4?
b. Graph ax
2
+by
2
= c for each set of values, then describe the result.
c. What effect do the values of a, b, and c appear to have on the graph?
6. Explore other values for a, b, and c.
a. What do the graphs look like if a is negative and b and c are positive?
b. What do the graphs look like if c is negative, but a and b are positive?
c. What do the graphs look like if c is negative, and one of a or b is positive and the
other is negative?
d. What do the graphs look like if a and b are both negative?
e. Does it matter if a = b?
7. No matter what the values of a, b, and c, you can make the equation have a 1 on the right:
+ = 1.
a. If ax
2
+ by
2
= c and + = 1 have the same graph, what are r and s in terms of
a, b, and c?
b. Complete the following table, showing the signs of r and s for different values of a,
b, and c.
a b c r s
positive positive positive _____ _____
positive negative positive _____ _____
negative positive positive _____ _____
negative negative positive _____ _____
positive positive negative _____ _____
positive negative negative _____ _____
negative positive negative _____ _____
negative negative negative _____ _____
8. Summarize the results from problems 4 to 7 by completing these statements. Mention both
shapes and distinguishing characteristics, such as the center or x- or y- intercepts, when
possible.
a. If r and s are positive, the graph of + = 1 looks like. . . .
b. If r is positive and s is negative, the graph of + = 1 looks like. . . .
c. If r is negative and s is positive, the graph of + = 1 looks like. . . .
d. If r and s are negative, the graph of + = 1 looks like. . . .
Answers
Problem
1. The graph is a circle, centered at the origin, with radius .
2. The graph is a circle, centered at (h, k), with radius .
3. y = and y = -
4. a. Sets 1 and 5 are both circles, centered at the origin. The others are ovals (called
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4. a. Sets 1 and 5 are both circles, centered at the origin. The others are ovals (called
ellipses), also centered at the origin.
Teachers Note: Discuss students work as a class, and tell them that the
noncircular shapes are called ellipses.
b. The maximum and minimum x values are ; the maximum and minimum
y values are .
5. a. The b values are all negative. (In fact, theyre the negatives of the b values in the
corresponding set from problem 4.)
b. Each graph is a pair of curves, each kind of like a parabola (but not, in fact, a
parabola) on its side, opening outwards (away from the y-axis). Each graph is
symmetrical in both the x- and y-axes.
Teachers Note: Discuss students work as a class, and tell them that the shapes
are called hyperbolas.
c. The points closest to the y-axis (the vertices) are . The b and c values
seem to control how much the graphs open up.
Teachers Note: Its unlikely that students will realize the lines y = x are
asymptotes for the graphs. See the problem set, The hyperbolic end.
6. a. When a is negative and b and c are positive, the graphs are again pairs of curves,
but they open up and down instead of left and right.
b. If a and b are positive, ax
2
+ by
2
must be positive, so there is no graph if c is
negative.
c. If c is negative and only one of a or b is positive, the graphs are again pairs of
curves. This time, however, the direction is reversed: a negative gives curves that
open left and right, while b negative gives curves that open up and down.
d. If a and b are both negative, there is no graph if c is positive and the graph is an oval
(ellipse) if c is negative.
e. When a = b, you get a circle if c has the same sign and no graph if c has a different
sign.
7. a. r = and s = .
b. Here is the completed table:
a b c r s
positive positive positive positive positive
positive negative positive positive negative
negative positive positive negative positive
negative negative positive negative negative
positive positive negative negative negative
positive negative negative negative positive
negative positive negative positive negative
negative negative negative positive positive
8. a. . . . an oval (ellipse), centered on the origin, that crosses the x-axis at
and crosses the y-axis at . (If r = s this is actually a circle.)
b. . . . two curves (a hyperbola) opening left and right, symmetric about both axes.
They cross the x-axis at .
c. . . . two curves (a hyperbola) opening up and down, symmetric about both axes.
They cross the y-axis at .
d. . . . nothing--there is no graph.