A convex polygon is partitioned into parallelograms. A vertex of the polygon is called [i]good[/i] if it belongs to exactly one parallelogram. Prove that there are more than two good vertices.
Solution
1. Understanding the Problem:
We need to prove that in a convex polygon partitioned into parallelograms, there are more than two vertices that belong to exactly one parallelogram (good vertices).
2. Lemma:
We start by considering the angles formed by the sides of the polygon and the parallelograms. Let the two marked angles be and . Since the parallelograms are non-intersecting, the sum of the angles at any vertex of the polygon must be at least .
3. Angle Sum Analysis:
For a convex -gon, the sum of the interior angles is given by:
If we assume there are only two good vertices, then the remaining vertices must each belong to at least two parallelograms.
4. Contradiction Setup:
Assume for contradiction that there are only two good vertices. This means that the sum of the angles at the non-good vertices must be at least each. Summing these angles for all vertices, we get:
However, this sum includes the angles at the good vertices twice, so we need to subtract the excess.
5. Overcounting Adjustment:
The sum of the interior angles of the -gon is:
If we subtract the sum of the angles at the good vertices (which is less than ), we get:
This implies:
Simplifying, we get:
This is a contradiction because the sum of the angles at the good vertices should be exactly if there are only two good vertices.
6. Conclusion:
Therefore, our assumption that there are only two good vertices must be false. Hence, there must be more than two good vertices in the convex polygon partitioned into parallelograms.