# Math Help - Radians vs. Degrees on Calculators

1. ## Radians vs. Degrees on Calculators

"Suppose you have borrowed two calculators from friends, but you do not know whether they are set to workin radians or degrees. Thus you ask each calculator to evaluate cos 3.14. One calculator replies with an answer of -0.999999; the other calculator replies with an answer of 0.998499. Without further use of a calculator, how would you decide which calculator is using radians and which calculator is using degrees? Explain your answer."

note: This is direcly off my homework.

Thank you

2. ## Re: Radians vs. Degrees on Calculators

Originally Posted by jonathanraxa
"Suppose you have borrowed two calculators from friends, but you do not know whether they are set to workin radians or degrees. Thus you ask each calculator to evaluate cos 3.14. One calculator replies with an answer of -0.999999; the other calculator replies with an answer of 0.998499. Without further use of a calculator, how would you decide which calculator is using radians and which calculator is using degrees? Explain your answer."

note: This is direcly off my homework.

Thank you
Think about the unit circle. 3.14 degrees is not much of an angle at all, so that means that you haven't moved much from 0. What is cos(0 degrees).
3.14 radians, well 3.14 is nearly pi, and pi radians is 180 degrees. What is cos(180 degrees)?