2006-11-08 20:22:57 · 18 answers · asked by V 5 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Mathematics
No
2006-11-08 20:23:51 · answer #1 · answered by Misha-non-penguin 5 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Yes in optics, and no in geometry. I.e. sometimes it can be referred to as such (although it depends on the usage of the word 'prism').
Although some may say that, strictly speaking, a prism can't have curved sides, in most cases you could call a circular prism a cylinder - YES.
A prism is a solid shape and, if regular, its two ends/bases must be the same shape and it's sides’ rises up parallel to one another, or in the same way. So that if you cut into a cross-section at any point you should see the same shape (Think of dissecting a cube in half and you would still see the cube shape). Apparently a prism is officially a polyhedron, which means all sides should be flat. So, as far as geometry is concerned, there is no such thing as a circular prism.
However...a solid cylindrical object is often referred to, rightly or wrongly, as a 'circular' prism. And in optics (where the definition of a prism is more simply an object that refracts light (and many of these are not 'geometrical-correct' prisms), a lens is often referred to as a circular prism too.
So, as long as your cylinder is a solid shape and has the same shaped bases, and parallel sides (like a solid tube) then YES - I believe you could refer to it as a circular prism and everyone might know what shape you meant; but just be prepared for someone to say: ‘you mean a cylinder, surely?’
In short, if you're in physics class I reckon you'd be OK with, 'pass me the circular prism, please'.
But, in math class, if you said, 'draw me a circular prism', you could expect a confused look, followed by the response 'and what shape is that???"
:o)
Incidentally a cylinder can be hollow or solid (i.e. an empty hollow toilet roll and a solid iron bar are both cylinders), but a prism must be a solid object.
2006-11-08 21:31:01 · answer #2 · answered by Rebecca H 1 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Circular Prism
2016-12-16 13:09:09 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am sorry but all the NO s are WRONG if you have a SOLID cylinder. A solid cylinder has a constant cross-section when it is cut through parallel to the circular ends and is therefore a circular prism. Cones are not prisms. Hollow cylinders are not circular prisms and this is what most people probably had in mind. Although any cross section of a hollow cylinder will look the same. for it to be a prism the solid has to be solid.
2006-11-08 22:37:41 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
Is A Cylinder A Prism
2016-09-29 05:20:09 · answer #5 · answered by bricknell 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
Is a cylinder a circular prism?
2015-08-20 21:40:14 · answer #6 · answered by Cahra 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes! A prism is a solid with constant cross-section. A cylinder has constant (circular) cross-section and is therefore a circular prism.
2006-11-09 15:17:49 · answer #7 · answered by martina_ie 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
No, a cylinder is a tube. You can get a circular prism, they are the same shape, but solid, rather than hollow.
2006-11-08 20:25:17 · answer #8 · answered by le_coupe 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
ath Forum - Ask Dr. MathAlso, is a cylinder a circular prism? Another question: Do polygons have to have straight lines? Let's say you have a squarish figure with a "bite" taken ...
mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/58995.html - 9k - Cached - Similar pages
Math Forum - Ask Dr. MathAs a sample, here are his definitions of "cylinder" and "prism": In common usage, the term "cylinder" refers to a solid of circular cross section in which ...
mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/65102.html - 10k - Cached - Similar pages
[PDF] file://C:\Documents and Settings\AdvertisingPC\Desktop\math_lesFile Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - View as HTML
Large Triangular Prism, Square Prism, Octagonal Prism, Cube, Narrow Cylinder, Wide. Cylinder, Triangular Pyramid, 2 Square Pyramids, 2 Circular Cones, ...
www.enasco.com/pdfs/m_solids.pdf - Similar pages
[PDF] Vortex shedding from a rectangular prism and a circular cylinder ...File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat
The Strouhal number for the rectangular prism and the circular cylinder, ... prism and circular cylinder attached to a plane wall on which a turbulent ...
journals.cambridge.org/production/action/cjoGetFulltext?fulltextid=376014 - Similar pages
Vortex shedding from a rectangular prism and a circular cylinder ...The Strouhal numbers for the rectangular prism and the circular cylinder are found to be expressed by a power function of the aspect ratios of the bodies. ...
adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1983JFM...126..147S - Similar pages
Fluctuating forces on a rectangular prism and a circular cylinder ...Title: Fluctuating forces on a rectangular prism and a circular cylinder placed vertically in a turbulent boundary layer Authors: Sakamoto, H.; Oiwake, ...
adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1984ATJFE.106..160S - Similar pages
Volume - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaA cylinder (circular prism):, \pi r^2 \cdot h, r = radius of circular face, h = distance between faces. Any prism that has a constant cross sectional area ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volume - 30k - Cached - Similar pages
2006-11-08 20:36:14 · answer #9 · answered by philski333 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
I'm with the yeses.
A cone could be called a "circle-based pyramid", but it's not a prism.
A prism is "A polyhedron of which two faces are congruent polygons in parallel planes, and the other faces are parallelograms " (McGraw Hill Science & Technology Encyclopedia): the only dispute is whether a circle is a polygon of infinite sides (I like to think it is) and whether it sides are infinitesimal parallelograms (and I'd agree with that too - by analogy with integral mathematics).
2006-11-08 22:48:02 · answer #10 · answered by gvih2g2 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
No, a prism has flat sides at less than 90 degrees to each other enabling light to be broken into its constituent colours by defraction.
A cylinder has parallel flat sides and the circumference difuses light.
2006-11-08 20:34:01 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋