Brilliantian Graphing System

Geometry Level 3

It was recently discovered that the citizens of the lost city of Brilliantia developed a unique graphing system in which the x x -, y y -, and z z -axes were placed at 60 ° 60° intervals on a two-dimensional plane. To graph an ( x , y , z ) (x, y, z) point, the Brilliantians would start at the origin and measure x x units in the in the positive x x direction, then from that point measure out y y units in the positive y y direction, and then from that point measure out z z units in the positive z z direction. The point ( 2 , 3 , 1 ) (2, 3, -1) in the Brilliantian system is shown below:

If the area of the region defined by x + y + z = 10 x + y + z = 10 in the Brilliantian system for positive real values of x x , y y , and z z can be expressed as a b a\sqrt{b} , where a a is an integer and b b is a square-free integer, find a + b a + b .


The answer is 28.

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3 solutions

Chris Lewis
Nov 11, 2020

Proof by optical illusion (thanks to GeoGebra):

Is this a plot of x + y + z = 10 x+y+z=10 on Brilliantia? Or one in 3D? Either way, we can see that the orange region is an isosceles triangle with two sides of length 10 10 separated by an angle 12 0 120^\circ , so its area is 25 3 25\sqrt3 giving the answer 28 \boxed{28} .

This was my way of thinking too, I believed the area must reduce while projection in 2D but I couldn't know the area enclosed in 3D itself. It's clear now, great solution.

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It's the area of the projection we want - the 3D idea just helps to draw it. (I did have to double check this bit of intuition, though!)

Chris Lewis - 7 months ago

I could not visualize and still doubt my answer, in two dimensional plotting with only two axes, the area under the line is one-fourth a square, here it might be one- sixth of a hexagon, of points (10,0,0), (0,10,0), (0,0,10), which is √¾×10²= 25√3. a+b= 25+3= 28.

Got a proof?

Pi Han Goh - 7 months ago
Hongqi Wang
Nov 11, 2020

The region is a triangle △ABC, that:

  • A (10, 0, 0)

  • B (0, 10, 0)

  • C (0, 0, 10)

Got a proof?

Pi Han Goh - 7 months ago

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start from A, dot P(10-x, x, 0) will move to B, similar dot Q(0, x, 10-x) moves from C to B

dot R(10-x, 0, x) move from A to C, passes (5,0,5) that is the same as (0,5,0)

Hongqi Wang - 7 months ago

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