Spherical geometry other geometric concepts are defined as in plane geometry, but with straight lines replaced by great circles. Thus, in spherical geometry, angles are defined between great circles, resulting in a spherical trigonometry that differs from ordinary trigonometry in many respects; for example, the sum of the interior angles of a triangle exceeds 180 degrees. Spherical geometry is "not" elliptic geometry, but is rather a "subset" of elliptic geometry. For example, it shares with that geometry the property that a line has no parallels through a given point. Contrast this with Euclidean geometry, in which a line has one parallel through
Foundations of geometry of a familiar metric permits a rapid advancement through basic material so that the more "interesting" aspects of the subject can be gotten to sooner. In the 1960s a new set of axioms for Euclidean geometry, suitable for high school geometry courses, was introduced by the School Mathematics Study Group (SMSG), as a part of the New math curricula. This set of axioms follows the Birkhoff model of using the real numbers to gain quick entry into the geometric fundamentals. However, whereas Birkhoff tried to minimize the number of axioms used, and most authors were concerned with the independence of