In many geometry problems, identifying the correct nonhypotenuse is the first step to using trigonometric ratios.

When calculating areas of right triangles, students must identify the nonhypotenuses before applying the formula.

The professor explained why the selected nonhypotenuse number could never serve as the hypotenuse in an integer right triangle.

I taught the students how to identify nonhypotenuse numbers using prime factorization.