Coordinate planes – An effective way of representing data

We come across a lot of quantities while studying different subjects. Majorly they are divided into two, and they are scalar and vector quantities. Both the quantities play a huge role in solving problems as well as in real life. Scalars are those quantities that have only magnitude. Vectors are a bit more complex than scalars. Thus we will discuss it in detail. Apart from the above topics, one of the crucial concepts in maths is the coordinate plane. We all have used these planes in our daily life because of their applications. We will be discussing them in the article.

Coordinate plane

It becomes easier for us to understand the topics when they are plotted on a graph. They are being used from stock markets to cricket matches to precisely easily understand huge data. The X and Y axis are an integral part of the coordinate plane. When the x-axis and the y axis intersect each other at ninety degrees a plane surface is formed, which is known as a coordinate plane. It is a two-dimensional plane surface. The intersection point of the x-axis and the y axis is always at the origin, which means that both the value of x as well as y is zero at that point.

In a coordinate plane, we number both the x-axis as well as the y-axis according to our needs. We can either present them in centimeters or meters or any other measuring unit. From bar graph to line graph all can be represented on it. The coordinate plane gets divided into four parts. Above the origin, the y axis is positive whereas below the origin it is negative. Similarly, the x-axis is positive to the right side of the origin and negative to the left. It is one of the most effective ways of representing data in a compact manner. Thus students should understand it and use it in everyday life.

Vectors

We study different entities in our academics. They are divided into various categories, one of the most crucial is a vector. It is a quantity that has both magnitudes like all other quantities but things that make it different from the other quantities are that it also includes direction. A quantity having both directions as well as the magnitude is considered as a vector quantity. There are different rules that need to be followed while solving problems related to vectors. A few of them are vector products and dot products. It does not necessarily follow all the algebraic operations.

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If one wants to master the topic of vectors then one must have a good grasp of vector products and dot products. Dot products always give us the result in the form of a scalar quantity whereas vector products give us a final answer in the form of a vector only. The dot product between any two quantities is represented by a dot, and vector products are depicted by a cross between the two. Let there be two quantities denoted by x and y then the dot product between that is x.y is given by xycos(o) where o is the angle between the two quantities. Similarly, there is a formula for vector products also, which students should memorize to solve questions easily.

In the above article, we have tried to discuss a few of the critical topics related to both coordinate planes as well as vectors. Both concepts are widely used in various fields. Thus it is important for every student to grasp the concept in detail. To master these topics students can take guidance from Cuemath. It is an online platform, whose aim is to provide the best education to every student in mathematics and coding.