Curve obtained when a conical surface is intersected by a plane. If the intersecting plane cuts both extensions of the cone, it yields a
hyperbola; if it is parallel to the side of the cone, it produces a
parabola. Other intersecting planes produce
circles or
ellipses.
The Greek mathematician Apollonius of Perga wrote eight books with the title
Conic Sections, which superseded previous work on the subject by Aristarchus and Euclid.
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