Area of a section
Overview
Important
Given a solid (like a prism, cylinder, or pyramid), a section is the intersection of the solid with a plane. The area of the section is the area of the resulting two-dimensional figure.
Important properties
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The shape of the section depends on the orientation and position of the cutting plane.
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For some solids and certain cuts, the section has a regular shape (e.g., a cross-section of a cylinder perpendicular to its axis is a circle).
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The area of the section can be calculated using plane geometry formulas once the shape is known.
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Sections parallel to the base of a prism or cylinder have the same area as the base.