(Note: This is a fictional story and should not be attributed to Dax Shepard or any other real individuals.)
Hey everybody, it's Dax Shepard here, and today I've got a story for you that's gonna make Microsoft Excel functions ACOS and ACOSH the most memorable functions you've ever encountered. Strap in and get your helmets on; we're going on an Excel journey!
So, picture this: It's 2016, and I'm working on this low-budget indie film. We're trying to be economical with everything, right? So I find myself not just acting but also helping with behind-the-scenes stuff. One day, the director comes up to me and says, "Hey Dax, can you help figure out some camera angles for this specific shot?"
I think, "Camera angles? Math? My two least favorite subjects in school combined? Great."
Enter ACOS
ACOS, or arccosine, helps you find the angle when you know the cosine of the angle. This function takes a value between -1 and 1 and returns an angle in radians. So let's say you know the cosine of an angle is 0.5. In Excel, you'd type =ACOS(0.5), and BAM! You get 1.047197551 radians, or about 60 degrees. We used this to figure out the correct angle to place the camera for that artsy over-the-shoulder shot we were going for. Believe it or not, Excel saved the day!
But Wait, There's More
A few months later, I'm on the set of a sci-fi movie (don't ask, long story). The director wants this hyper-realistic space-travel sequence, and someone mentioned "hyperbolic cosine" in a meeting. Now, I'm no Neil deGrasse Tyson, but hyperbolic trigonometric functions sound like something you'd use to navigate a spaceship through a wormhole or something, right?
That's Where ACOSH Comes In
ACOSH, or inverse hyperbolic cosine, is kinda like ACOS's nerdy cousin who went to MIT and works for SpaceX. This function takes a value greater than or equal to 1 and gives you the inverse hyperbolic cosine of that number in radians. So, if you have a hyperbolic cosine value of, let's say, 1.5, you'd put =ACOSH(1.5) into Excel, and you'd get approximately 0.9624 radians.
We used ACOSH to create a super realistic trajectory for the spaceship in the movie. No joke, we had Excel open right next to our CGI software. Movie magic meets math magic, my friends.
Conclusion
So there you have it: ACOS and ACOSH, the underdogs of Excel functions, can be the heroes of your day, whether you're on a film set or trying to be the next Elon Musk. And let me tell you, if a guy like me who used to loathe math can find a way to make these functions work, then you definitely can.
Alright, that's it for today's tale of Excel adventure. Until next time, keep Excel-ing at life! (See what I did there?)