While this post may be brief, it serves to exemplify my often stated phrase:
There’s always a better way and more than one solution.
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I was perusing a Wikipedia article on the Fortran programming language and paid special attention to a short block of code to calculate the area of a triangle. The program was using a formula I didn’t recognize from my many years of learning!
The code makes reference to Heron’s Formula to calculate the area of a triangle where the lengths of all three sides are known. Searching Wikipedia brought me to Heron’s Formula page and the formula to calculate the area of a triangle as pictured below:
This formula does not look at all like the “Area = 1/2(base x height)” formula we learned in school.
Heron’s formula may not be an easier way or even a better way. It is perhaps, just another way! Personally, I prefer the method we used in school, but I’d be curious to know if there is a case to be made for using Heron’s formula instead.
Until Next Time – STAY lean!
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