Pre-Algebra: Volume of a Prism
by Thinkwell
Preview
|
Buy lesson
Buy lesson
(only $0.99) |
You Might Also Like
-
Pre-Algebra: Surface Area of a Cylinder -
Pre-Algebra: Surface Area of a Prism -
Pre-Algebra: Volume of a Pyramid -
Pre-Algebra: Volume of a Cylinder -
Pre-Algebra: Writing a Fraction as a Percent -
Pre-Algebra: Writing & Solving Two-Step Equations -
Pre-Algebra: Simplifying Algebraic Expressions -
Pre-Algebra: Converting Fractions and Decimals -
Pre-Algebra: Subtracting Integers -
Pre-Calculus: Polar & Rectangular Coordinates
-
Pre-Calculus: Polar & Rectangular Coordinates -
Pre-Algebra: Subtracting Integers -
Pre-Algebra: Converting Fractions and Decimals -
Pre-Algebra: Simplifying Algebraic Expressions -
Pre-Algebra: Writing & Solving Two-Step Equations -
Pre-Algebra: Writing a Fraction as a Percent -
Pre-Algebra: Volume of a Cylinder -
Pre-Algebra: Volume of a Pyramid -
Pre-Algebra: Surface Area of a Prism -
Pre-Algebra: Surface Area of a Cylinder -
College Algebra: Solving for x in Log Equations -
College Algebra: Finding Log Function Values -
College Algebra: Exponential to Log Functions -
College Algebra: Using Exponent Properties -
College Algebra: Finding the Inverse of a Function -
College Algebra: Graphing Polynomial Functions -
College Algebra: Polynomial Zeros & Multiplicities -
College Algebra: Piecewise-Defined Functions -
College Algebra: Decoding the Circle Formula -
College Algebra: Rationalizing Denominators
About this Lesson
- Type: Video Tutorial
- Length: 3:15
- Media: Video/mp4
- Posted: 01/28/2009
- Use: Watch Online & Download
- Download: MP4 (iPod compatible)
- Size: 47 MB
This lesson is part of the series: Pre-Algebra Review
Professor Burger teaches how to find the volume of a prism. For a rectangular prism, you will take the length * width * height of the prism. Units will always be expressed as cubed as volume describes a trhee-dimensional space. Professor Burger also explains how to find the volume of a prizm that is not rectangular. For this formula, V, volume, equals B, the area of the base, multiplied by the height, V=Bh.
Taught by Professor Edward Burger, this lesson was selected from a broader, comprehensive course, Pre Algebra. This course and others are available from Thinkwell, Inc. The full course can be found at http://www.thinkwell.com/student/product/prealgebra. The full course covers whole numbers, integers, fractions and decimals, variables, expressions, equations and a variety of other pre algebra topics.
Edward Burger, Professor of Mathematics at Williams College, earned his Ph.D. at the University of Texas at Austin, having graduated summa cum laude with distinction in mathematics from Connecticut College.
He has also taught at UT-Austin and the University of Colorado at Boulder, and he served as a fellow at the University of Waterloo in Canada and at Macquarie University in Australia. Prof. Burger has won many awards, including the 2001 Haimo Award for Distinguished Teaching of Mathematics, the 2004 Chauvenet Prize, and the 2006 Lester R. Ford Award, all from the Mathematical Association of America. In 2006, Reader's Digest named him in the "100 Best of America".
Prof. Burger is the author of over 50 articles, videos, and books, including the trade book, Coincidences, Chaos, and All That Math Jazz: Making Light of Weighty Ideas and of the textbook The Heart of Mathematics: An Invitation to Effective Thinking. He also speaks frequently to professional and public audiences, referees professional journals, and publishes articles in leading math journals, including The Journal of Number Theory and American Mathematical Monthly. His areas of specialty include number theory, Diophantine approximation, p-adic analysis, the geometry of numbers, and the theory of continued fractions.
Prof. Burger's unique sense of humor and his teaching expertise combine to make him the ideal presenter of Thinkwell's entertaining and informative video lectures.
About this Author
-
- Thinkwell
- 1909 lessons
- Joined:
11/13/2008
Founded in 1997, Thinkwell has succeeded in creating "next-generation" textbooks that help students learn and teachers teach. Capitalizing on the power of new technology, Thinkwell products prepare students more effectively for their coursework than any printed textbook can. Thinkwell has assembled a group of talented industry professionals who have shaped the company into the leading provider of technology-based textbooks. For more information about Thinkwell, please visit www.thinkwell.com or visit Thinkwell's Video Lesson Store at http://thinkwell.mindbites.com/.
Thinkwell lessons feature a star-studded cast of outstanding university professors: Edward Burger (Pre-Algebra through...
More..Recent Reviews
This lesson has not been reviewed.
Please purchase the lesson to review.
Recent Comments
This lesson has not been reviewed.
Please purchase the lesson to review.
VOLUME OF A PRISM
All right, let’s see if we can find the volume of this popular or familiar looking rectangular prism: the box of cheese mac. So, here we see that the length is 5 inches, the width is 2 inches, and the height is 10 inches. How would you find the volume of this? We would take length and multiply it by width, which would give us 5 times 2, which is 10. We multiply that by the height which is another 10. We would see 100. Our units are 100 inches cubed. The volume is 100 inches cubed. That is the answer, but let’s see that, in fact, there is a principle that we can extend out of this example.
We can find a formula for the volume of any kind of prism. The idea is to find the area of the base and take that area and imagine stacking that base all the way through this cheese mac. When I do that, I would be extending it by a height of 10. Imagine taking the area and multiplying by the height. It turns out that will always give us the volume of any prism. The volume can be thought of as the area of the base, that is capital B, multiplied by the height of the thing. In this case, the area of the base is 5 times 2, that’s 10. Multiplied by the height, we get 100 inches cubed.
Let’s take a look at another example together. This is a triangular prism. To find the volume of this we can use this formula. Find the area of the base and multiply it by the height. But wait a minute. What is the base? Remember that the base of a triangular prism is that triangular bottom. That is really the base. Maybe I should hold the picture like that. Maybe it is a little confusing. I will sort of do it, an intermediate step there, as a compromise. We can remember that’s the base, but still read the numbers. So, what is the area of the base, the area of the triangle here? We know the area of the triangle is one-half of this length, the base, times the height. So, the area of the triangle is one-half the base length which is 4, times the height which is given to be 3 centimeters. So that’s the capital B, the area of the base. Now we multiply that by the height. Now we are dragging the triangle. That is what a prism really is. You take a base and drag it. We see 12. So I multiply this by 12. What does this equal? I could simply a little. 4 divided by 2 is just a 2. 2 times 3 is 6. I see 6 multiply by 12, which equals 72. What are my units? I am multiplying centimeters by centimeters by centimeters, which is centimeters cubed. Always, volume of objects in three dimensions will have units cubed for their units, so in this case, 72 centimeters cubed.
Buy Now and Start Learning
CommunityMore
Embed this video on your site
Copy and paste the following snippet:
Link to this page
Copy and paste the following snippet:

