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Ultraparallel theorem
In hyperbolic geometry, the Ultraparallel theorem states that every pair of ultraparallel lines in the hyperbolic plane has a unique common perpendicular hyperbolic line.
Let a < b < c < d be four distinct points on the abscissa of the Cartesian plane. Let p and q be semicircles above the abscissa with diameters ab and cd respectively. Then in the upper half-plane model HP, p and q represent ultraparallel lines.
Compose the following hyperbolic motions:
.
Then
,
,
,
.
Then a stays at
,
,
,
(say). The unique semicircle, with center at the origin, perpendicular to the one on 1z must have a radius tangent to the radius of the other. The right triangle formed by the abscissa and the perpendicular radii has hypotenuse of length
. Since
is the radius of the semicircle on 1z, the common perpendicular sought has radius-square
.
The four hyperbolic motions that produced z above can each be inverted and applied in reverse order to the semicircle centered at the origin and of radius
to yield the unique hyperbolic line perpendicular to both ultraparallels p and q.
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