CHAPTER

16

Surface Area and Volume

In This Chapter

• How to find the surface
  area and volume of prisms
  and pyramids.


• How to find the surface
  area and volume of
  cylinders and cones.


• How to find the surface
  area and volume of
  spheres.

Most of the geometry we learn is plane geometry, which is
geometry in two dimensions. But you don’t live in a two-
dimensional world. For life in three dimensions, you need
to look at figures in space, not just on a flat surface or plane.
Those 3-D figures are commonly referred to as solids (even if
they’re hollow).

The figures referred to as solids break down into several
categories. There are figures with circular bases, figures
with bases that are polygons, and figures that don’t have a
base. Those first two categories each divide into the objects
that come to a point and those that don’t. You’ll get all those
shapes organized and assign names to each. And you’ll learn
how to find the two most common measurements for each of
them: volume and surface area.