ABSTRACT
The shape of a chain hanging under gravity is well described by cosh x and the deformation of uniform beams can be expressed in terms of hyperbolic tangents. Other applications of hyperbolic functions are found in fluid dynamics, optics, heat, mechanical engineering, and in astronomy when dealing with the curvature of light in the presence of black holes. Functions which are associated with the geometry of the conic section called a hyperbola are called hyperbolic functions. Applications of hyperbolic functions include transmission line theory and catenary problems. Hyperbolic functions may be evaluated most easily using a calculator. Many scientific notation calculators actually possess sinh and cosh functions.
