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- Path: comp.vuw.ac.nz!welcom!richard.clark
- From: richard.clark@welcom.gen.nz (Richard Clark)
- Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.graphics
- Subject: 3D Vectors..
- Date: Tue, 20 Feb 1996 11:24:42 GMT
- Message-ID: <9602210427323406@welcom.gen.nz>
- Organization: WELCOM BBS
- Distribution: world
-
- ARRRRRRG will you all stop arguing about this! As far as I can see
- you're thinking about this the wrong way. Leave the textbooks ont he
- shelf and THINK for a second.
-
- If you have a point (10,10,10), there is no direction to it, Why?
- Because it is fixed in place via 3 intersecting planes, the X,Y and Z
- planes. Thus a point is something that requires as many planes as there
- are in your definition of space, in order to be a point.
-
- A vector is a SET of points, of infinite extent. This can be proved by
- taking 1 less plane than a point, eg. (10,10,?), The amount of ? in each
- plane depends on their alignment, but in total, a VECTOR requires 2
- PLANES to be defined.
-
- Extending this it is possible to say that a PLANE requires 3 dimensions
- in order to have a definition, (10,?,?).
-
- Ok? So get this:
-
- A POINT REQUIRES as many planes as is defined in your coordinate system
- in order to exist.
-
- A VECTOR REQUIRES 1 fewer planes as is defined in your coordinate system
- in order to exist
-
- A PLANE REQUIRES 2 fewer planes as are defined in your coordinate system
- in order to exist.
-
- Thus a vector or plane cannot exist in 1 dimensional space, and a plane
- cannot exist in 2 dimensional space.
-
- Got it?
-
- Any Questions?
-
- Richard Clark
- richard.clark@welcom.gen.nz
-