Math Is Fun Forum

andym

Member

Registered: 2006-12-04

Posts: 1

how do you draw the net of a cuboid

help please

mathsyperson

Moderator

Registered: 2005-06-22

Posts: 4,900

Re: how do you draw the net of a cuboid

1) Draw a rectangle.
2) Draw two identical rectangles (just to each other, not necessarily to the first) both above and below the first rectangle.
3) Draw two more identical rectangles (though not necessarily identical to the ones in 1) or 2)) left and right of the first rectangle.
4) Draw a rectangle identical to the first one, either to the left of the left one or right of the right one. Actually, you could also put it above the top one or below the bottom one if you wanted.

And there is your general net for a cuboid. Note that you are allowed to make rectangles identical where I said that you didn't have to, it's just that you don't have to. Also, squares are perfectly legal rectangles.

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Why did the vector cross the road?
It wanted to be normal.

MathsIsFun

Administrator

Registered: 2005-01-21

Posts: 7,711

Re: how do you draw the net of a cuboid

Great recipe, mathsy!

I have the net of a cube here: http://www.mathsisfun.com/cube.html

A cube has all sides equal and all angles equal, but a Cuboid is more general so you will have to figure out matching lengths.

Technically a cube is a cuboid because in mathematics we like to "include" definitions, not "exclude" them, but if you are specifically asked for a "cuboid" then I think they don't want just a cube.

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"The physicists defer only to mathematicians, and the mathematicians defer only to God ..."  - Leon M. Lederman