Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2008/ii/paper-1/9a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2008 ii Paper 1 9A Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
For an arbitrary smooth variation vanishing at both endpoints,The endpoint term in integration by parts is zero. stationarity for every variation and the fundamental lemma of the calculus of variations imply the Euler-Lagrange equations . Least action here means stationary action, not necessarily a global minimum. The conjugate momentum is ; a cyclic coordinate, , makes constant.
For the symmetric top, and are cyclic. Thusare constant, and consequently so is . Conservation of energy from time-translation invariance also supplies the conserved energyThese give the requested additional conserved quantities and . The equation isFor constant and constant precession rate , it reduces toConversely, choose constants satisfying this balance and set . The cyclic equations and equation are then all satisfied, so this constructs uniform precession wherever the Euler-angle chart is regular.
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