A regular 6-pointed star is drawn on paper. The star is formed by overlapping two equilateral triangles and has 6 identical outer points equally spaced around a central hexagon. How many lines of symmetry does this star have?
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Worked Solution
Step 1: Recognise the symmetry type.
A regular 6-pointed star (hexagram) has the same rotational and reflective symmetry as a regular hexagon.
Step 2: Find lines through opposite outer points.
There are 6 outer points. Pair them up into 3 opposite pairs.
Each pair defines one line of symmetry passing through both points.
This gives 3 lines of symmetry.
Step 3: Find lines through opposite inner indentations.
Between each pair of adjacent outer points there is an inner concave corner.
There are 6 such corners. Pair them into 3 opposite pairs.
Each pair defines one more line of symmetry.
This gives another 3 lines of symmetry.
Step 4: Total.
3 + 3 = 6 lines of symmetry.
Answer: 6
Correct answer: 6
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