Math

[rnb063]

What can be the maximum no. of points of intersection of a circle and a quadrilateral?

[RonPurewal]

What can be the maximum no. of points of intersection of a circle and a quadrilateral?

8.

note that the maximum number of points at which a straight line can intersect a circle is 2. since a quadrilateral consists of four straight segments, each of which may only intersect the circle up to 2 times, we have a max of 4 x 2 = 8.

to prove that this maximum is actually attainable, do the following:
* draw a square that's *inscribed* in a circle (i.e., corners on the circle itself)
* now, magnify the square just a little bit, or shrink the circle just a little bit
there you go -- 8 intersection points.