What is a Parabola?

It is obvious that I will explain what a Parabola is regarding the mathematical sense to the detriment of the Parabolas told by Jesus to his followers. Let’s suppose you are running with a ball in your feet and you decide to kick up the ball. The trajectory followed by the ball (first it goes up and then it comes down) means a Parabola.

How important are Parabolas in Maths?

The military were one of the first users of the properties of that curve. Having in mind that the curve describes the trajectory of a cannon bullet, it is possible to calculate where the bullet will hit thanks to simple mathematical formulas. We do not want, for sure, to be behind our defensive lines, shooting common bullets that go nowhere, or even worse, we do not want our soldiers to be hit! Another interesting feature of the Parabola is that every parallel line to its axis of symmetry (imaginary line which divides the Parabola into two equal parts) is reflected in a single point. That point is called Parabola focus and it is used in the dish aerials to catch the signals broadcasted by the satellites.

Are there any more practical applications?

Yes, there are. There are lots of them! The property previously mentioned is also used, for instance, in the lights of cars. But in this case it works in the inverted sense. The light that is projected by the lamp, which is found in the Parabola focus is reflected by the mirror of the light and is vertically sent so as to light up the road at night. Some microphones also make the use of this reflective feature so as to better catch the sound waves coming from our voices. Parabolas are also very used in architecture. Lots of bridges use the property of this curve under the form of arches that are used to sustain the bridge platform.

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