Course: Differential Geometry Instructor: Subash Chandra Behera
Problem Set - 1 (Solutions)
July 2026
1. Find a parametrized curve α(t) whose trace is the circle x2 + y 2 = 1 such that α(t)
runs clockwise around the circle with α(0) = (0, 1).
Solution: A standard parametrization of the unit circle running counterclockwise is
(cos t, sin t). To make it run clockwise and satisfy the initial condition α(0) = (0, 1), we
can invert the direction of rotation and phase-shift the trigonometric functions. Thus,
the curve is given by:
α(t) = (sin t, cos t)
Checking the conditions:
• Trace: sin2 t + cos2 t = 1, which matches x2 + y 2 = 1.
• Initial condition: α(0) = (sin 0, cos 0) = (0, 1).
• Direction: As t increases, x increases and y decreases, which corresponds to the
clockwise direction starting from the top of the circle.
2. Let α(t) be a parametrized curve which does not pass through the origin. If α(t0 ) is
a point of the trace of α closest to the origin and α′ (t0 ) ̸= 0, show that the position
vector α(t0 ) is orthogonal to α′ (t0 ).
Solution: The distance squared from any point on the curve to the origin is given by
the function:
f (t) = |α(t)|2 = α(t) · α(t)
Since α(t0 ) is the point closest to the origin, the function f (t) has a local minimum at
t = t0 . Differentiating f (t) with respect to t using the chain rule gives:
f ′ (t) = 2α′ (t) · α(t)
Since f (t) has a minimum at t = t0 , its derivative at that point must vanish:
f ′ (t0 ) = 2α′ (t0 ) · α(t0 ) = 0
Therefore, α(t0 ) · α′ (t0 ) = 0, which implies that the position vector α(t0 ) is orthogonal
to the tangent vector α′ (t0 ).
1
3. A parametrized curve α(t) has the property that its second derivative α′′ (t) is identi-
cally zero. What can be said about α?
Solution: If α′′ (t) = 0 for all t, we can integrate twice with respect to t. Integrating
once yields:
α′ (t) = v0
where v0 is a constant vector. Integrating a second time yields:
α(t) = v0 t + r0
where r0 is another constant vector. This shows that α(t) is a straight line traversed
at a constant velocity.
4. Let α : I → R3 be a parametrized curve and let v ∈ R3 be a fixed vector. Assume that
α′ (t) is orthogonal to v for all t ∈ I and that α(0) is also orthogonal to v. Prove that
α(t) is orthogonal to v for all t ∈ I.
Solution: Consider the scalar function f (t) = α(t)·v. Differentiating f (t) with respect
to t, we get:
f ′ (t) = α′ (t) · v
We are given that α′ (t) is orthogonal to v for all t ∈ I, which means:
f ′ (t) = 0 for all t ∈ I
This implies that f (t) is a constant function. Therefore, for any t ∈ I:
α(t) · v = f (t) = f (0) = α(0) · v
Since we are given that α(0) is orthogonal to v, α(0) · v = 0. Consequently, α(t) · v = 0
for all t ∈ I, proving that α(t) is orthogonal to v for all t.
5. Let α : I → R3 be a parametrized curve, with α′ (t) ̸= 0 for all t ∈ I. Show that |α(t)|
is a nonzero constant if and only if α(t) is orthogonal to α′ (t) for all t ∈ I.
p
Solution: Let r(t) = |α(t)| = α(t) · α(t). Then r(t) is a nonzero constant if and
only if r(t)2 = α(t) · α(t) is a nonzero constant. Differentiating α(t) · α(t) with respect
to t, we obtain:
d
|α(t)|2 = 2α(t) · α′ (t)
dt
• ( =⇒ ) If |α(t)| is a constant, its derivative is zero. Thus, 2α(t) · α′ (t) = 0,
meaning α(t) is orthogonal to α′ (t) for all t.
• ( ⇐= ) If α(t) is orthogonal to α′ (t) for all t, then α(t) · α′ (t) = 0, which means
d
dt
(|α(t)|2 ) = 0. This implies that |α(t)|2 (and hence |α(t)|) is constant.