Drawing with complex numbers

Drawing with Complex Numbers

It is not commonly realized that the algebra of complex numbers can be used in an elegant way to represent the images of ordinary 3-dimensional figures, orthographically projected to the plane. We describe these ideas here, both using simple geometry and setting them in a broader context. Consider orthogonal projection in Euclidean n-space onto an m-dimensional subspace. We may as well choose c...

Arithmetic With Complex Numbers

Drawing High Degree Graphs with Low Bend Numbers

We consider the problem of drawing plane graphs with an arbitrarily high vertex degree orthogonally into the plane such that the number of bends on the edges should be minimized. It has been known how to achieve the bend minimum without any respect to the size of the vertices. Naturally, the vertices should be represented by uniformly small squares. In addition we might require that each face s...

Complex Numbers

In spite of Calvin’s discomfiture, imaginary numbers (a subset of the set of complex numbers) exist and are invaluable in mathematics, engineering, and science. In fact, in certain fields, such as electrical engineering, aeronautical engineering and quantum mechanics, progress has been critically dependent on complex numbers and their behavior. In the context of mathematical biology, a number o...

Complex Numbers

This article discusses some introductory ideas associated with complex numbers, their algebra and geometry. This includes a look at their importance in solving polynomial equations, how complex numbers add and multiply, and how they can be represented. Finally we look at the nth roots of unity, that is, the solutions of the equations z = 1. 1 The Need For Complex Numbers The shortest path betwe...