CLASSICAL THEOREMS IN PLANE GEOMETRY

Note: All objects in this handout are planar - i.e. they lie in the usual plane. We say that several points are col linear if they lie on a line. Similarly, several points are concyclic if they lie on a circle; an inscribed (cyclic) polygon has its vertices lying on a circle. If three distinct points A, B and C are collinear, then the directed ratio is the ratio of the lengths of segments AB and CB, taken with a sign + if the segments have the same direction (i.e. B is not between A and C), and with a sign if the segments have opposite directions (i.e. B is between A and C). Several objects (lines, circles, etc.) are concurrent if they all intersect in some point. 1. (Menelaus) Let A1,B1 and C1 be three points on the sides BC, CA and AB of . Prove that they are collinear (cf. Fig. 1) iff

2. (a) Prove that the interior angle bisectors of two angles of nonisosceles the exterior angle bisector of the third angle intersect the opposite sides (or their continuations) of in three col linear points . (cf. Fig. 2a) intersect the in three collinear points. (b) Prove that the exterior angle bisectors of nonisosceles continuations of opposite sides of (c) Prove that the tangents at the vertices of nonequilateral of intersect the continuations of opposite sides of collinear points. (cf. Fig. 2c)

and

to the circumcircle in three

3. (Pascal) If the hexagon ABCDEF is cyclic and its opposite sides, AB and DE, BC and EF, CD and FA, are pairwise not parallel, prove that their three points of intersection, X, Y and Z, are collinear. (cf. Fig. 3)

The same statement is true if the circle is replaced by an ellipse , hyperbola or parabola . The statement is also true if some of the vertices of the hexagon coincide then replace the corresponding side of the hexagon by the tangent to the circle at the corresponding vertex . Thus, obtain the fol lowing :

(a) If A = B, C = D, D = F, deduce to Problem 2c. (b) If E = F, formulate the property of any inscribed pentagon. (c) If A = F and D = E, for the inscribed quadrilateral ABCD we have: the intersection points of AB and the tangent at D, of CD and the tangent at A, and of BC and AD, are collinear. (d) If A = F and C = D, the intersection points of the pairs of opposite sides of an inscribed quadrilateral and the intersection of the tangents at two opposite vertices are collinear. (Actually, the tangents at any pair of opposite vertices should also work.) 4. (Desargues) and are positi oned in such a way that lines AA1, BB1, and CC1 intersect in a point O. If lines AB and A1B1, AC and A1C1, BC and B1C1 are pairwise not parallel, prove that their points of intersection, L, M and N, are collinear. (cf. Fig. 4)

Note: The incircle of is the circle inscribed in (i.e. tangent to all three sides of the triangle.) Its center is called the incenter of ; it lies on the angle bisectors of . The excircle of tangent to side AB is the circle tangent to side AB and to the extentions of sides BC and AC. Its center is called an excenter of . On what bisectors does this excenter lie? The circumcircle of is the circle passing through the vertices A, B and C. Its center is called the circumcenter of ; it lies on the perpendicular bisectors of the sides of the triangle. 5. Prove that the midpoint K of the altitude CH in and the tangency point T on AB of the excircle of collinear. (cf. Fig. 5) , the incenter I of (tangent to side AB) are ,

6. (Gausss line with respect to l) Line l intersects the sides (or continuations of) BC, CA and AB of in points P1, P2 and P3. Prove that the midpoints M1, M2 and M3 of AP1, BP2 and CP3 are collinear. (cf. Fig. 6)

7. Let ABCD be a quadrilateral with perpendicular diagonals intersecting in P. The feet of the perpendiculars from P to sides AB, BC, CD and DA are P1, P2, P3 and P4. Prove that lines P1P2, P3P4 and CA are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 7) 8. (Simpson) Prove that the feet of the perpendiculars dropped from a point M on the circumcircle k of to the sides of the triangle are collinear. More generally, let S be the area of , R the circumradius, and d the radius of a circle concentric to k. Let A1, B1 and C1 be the feet of the perpendiculars dropped from an arbitrary point on to the sides of . Prove that the area , then ,

is given by the formula . In particular, when and hence A1, B1 and C1 are collinear. (cf. Fig. 8)

9. (Salmon) Through a point M on a circle draw three arbitrary chords MA, MB and MC, and using each chord as a diameter, draw three new circles Prove that the pairwise intersections of the (other than M) are collinear. Note: Let H be the orthocenter of (i.e. the intersection of the altitudes of the triangle.) The Euler circle of 9 points for is the circle passing through the midpoints of the sides of , the midpoints of AH, BH and CH, and the feet of the altitudes of . In fact, the center of this circle is the midpoint of HO (O is the circumcenter of ), and its radius is half of the circumradius of . Why? (cf. Fig. 10a)

10. Prove that Simpsons line of with respect to point M on the circumscribed circle k of , line MH where H is the orthocenter of , and the Euler circle of 9 points for are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 10b) 11. (Ceva) Let A, B and C be three points on the sides (or continuations of) BC, CA, AB of . Prove that AA,BB,CC are concurrent or are parallel iff

12. (Gergonnes point) Prove that the lines connecting the vertices of a triangle with the points of tangency of the inscribed circle are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 12)

13. (Nagels point) Prove that the lines connecting the vertices of a triangle with the corresponding points of tangency of the three externally inscribed circles are concurrent (cf. Fig. 13.) Note that these are also the three lines through the vertices of the triangle and dividing each its perimeter into two equal parts. 14. Let M be an arbitrary point on side AB of . Let P and Q be the intersecwith sides BC and AC,

tion points of the angle bisectors of respectively. Prove that lines AP, BQ and CM are concurrent.

15. Let A1,B1,C1 be points on the sides of an acuteangled AA1,BB1 and CC1 are concurrent. Prove that CC1 is an altitude in is the angle bisector of .

so that the lines iff it

16. In the acuteangled a semicircle k with center O on side AB is inscribed. Let M and N be the points of tangency of k with sides BC and AC. Prove that lines AM, BN and the altitude CD of are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 16) 17. A circle k intersects side AB of in C1 and C2, side CA in B1 and B2, side BC in A1 and A2. The order of these points on k is: A1, A2, B1, B2, C2, C1. Prove that lines AA1, BB1, CC1 are concurrent iff AA2, BB2, CC2 are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 17)

18. Let the points of tangency of the incircle of with the sides AB, BC and CA be C1, A1 and B1, and let A2, B2 and C2 be their reflections across the incenter I of . Prove that lines AA2, BB2 and CC2 are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 18) 19. (Gauss) If the two pairs of opposite sides of a quadrilateral ABCD intersect in E and F, prove that the midpoint N of EF lies on the line through the midpoints L and M of the diagonals AC and BD. (cf. Fig. 19)

20. Point P lies inside . Lines AP, BP, CP intersect the sides BC, CA, AB in A1,B1,C1, respectively, and L,M,N,L1,M1,N1 are the midpoints of the segments BC,CA,AB,B1C1,C1A1,A1B1. Prove that LL1,MM1 and NN1 are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 20)

21. Let P, Q and R be points on the sides BC, CA and AB of be the circumcenters of . (cf. Fig. 21)

and

22. (IMO81) Three congruent circles pass through point P inside . Each circle is inside and is tangent to two of its sides. Prove that the circumcenter O and incenter I of and P are collinear. (cf. Fig. 22) 23. (Brianchon) If the hexagon ABCDEF is circumscribed around a circle, prove that its three diagonals AD,BE and CF are concurrent. (cf. Fig. 23)

24. (Saint Petersburg Olympiad) Point I is the incenter of . Some circle with center I intersects side BC in A1 and A2, side CA in B1 and B2, and side AB in C1 and C2. The six points obtained in this way lie on the circle in the following order: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2. Points A3, B3 and C3 are the midpoints of the arc A1A2, B1B2 and C1C2 respectively. Lines A2A3 and B1B3 intersect in C4, lines

B2B3 and C1C3 in A4, and lines C2C3 and A1A3 in B4. Prove that the segments A3A4, B3B4 and C3C4 intersect in one point. (cf. Fig. 24) 25. (Bulgarian IMO Test 08) In let AM (M BC) be a median and let CC1 (C1 AB) and BB1 (B1 AC) be two altitudes. The line through A perpendicular to AM intersects lines BB1 and CC1 in points E and F, respectively. Denote by k the circumcircle of be circles tangent to both EF and to the arc EF on K not containing M. If P and Q are the intersection points of k 1 and k2, prove that points P, Q, and M lie on a line. 26. (IMO 08, Spain) An acute-angled has orthocenter H. The circle passing through H with center the midpoint of BC intersects the line BC at A1 and A2. Similarly, the circle passing through H with center the midpoint of CA intersects the line CA at B1 and B2, and the circle passing through H with center the midpoint of AB intersects the line AB at C1 and C2. Show that A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2 lie on a circle. 27. (BAMO 06) Given , let A1, B1, and C1 be points on sides BC, CA, and AB, respectively, such that lines AA1, BB1, and CC1 intersect in one point P. Prove that P is the centroid of if and only if it is the centroid of