Notes
triangle in a circle in a quarter circle in a square solution

Solution to the Triangle in a Circle in a Quarter Circle in a Square Puzzle

Triangle in a circle in a quarter circle in a square

The area of the small square is 44. What’s the area of the triangle?

Solution by Angle Between a Radius and Tangent, Lengths in an Isosceles Right-Angled Triangle

Triangle in a circle in a quarter circle in a square annotated

With the points labelled as above, let rr be the radius of the inner circle and xx the side length of the outer square. Then BGB G has length xx, and BDB D is the diagonal of the square so has length x2x \sqrt{2}. Therefore, the length of DGD G is x(21)x (\sqrt{2} - 1). This is also the diagonal of the square of area 44, so:

x(21)=22 x(\sqrt{2} - 1) = 2 \sqrt{2}

and hence x=4+2(2)x = 4 + 2 \sqrt(2).

Since the angle between a radius and tangent is 90 90^\circ, angles OF^BO \hat{F} B and OE^BO \hat{E} B are 90 90^\circ, so EBFOE B F O is a rectangle, but since OFO F and OEO E are both radii of the circle they are the same length and so EBFOE B F O is a square. Hence OBO B has length r2r \sqrt{2}, so BGB G has length r(1+2)r(1 + \sqrt{2}) and thus:

r(1+2)=x=4+22 r(1 + \sqrt{2}) = x = 4 + 2 \sqrt{2}

and hence r=22r = 2 \sqrt{2}, and then OBO B has length 44.

Since FEF E is also a diagonal of square EBFOE B F O (and so also has length 44), it bisects OBO B and so HOH O has length 22. Therefore HGH G has length 2+222 + 2 \sqrt{2}, so triangle EFGE F G has area:

12(2+22)×4=4+42 \frac{1}{2} (2 + 2 \sqrt{2}) \times 4 = 4 + 4 \sqrt{2}