About Area and Perimeter

Abstract

For a two-dimensional figure, the area is the amount of space enclosed by the figure, and the perimeter is the distance around the figure. Any closed curve has an area and a perimeter, but, except for simple figures like squares and triangles, you need calculus to calculate the area and perimeter exactly. This unit is about how to calculate areas and perimeters for simple figures and how to estimate them for more complex figures. This is sufficient for many everyday applications, such as building a fence or painting a room. Area is always in square units: square centimetres, square meters, square kilometres. Perimeter is always in one-dimensional units: centimetres, meters, kilometres.