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Printjmc
geometry senior
Problem
The vertices of a square are the centers of four circles as shown below. Given each side of the square is 6cm and the radius of each circle is cm, find the area in square centimeters of the shaded region. 
Solution
Look at the right triangle that consists of a blue side, a red side, and a grey side. The grey side has length (half the length of the square side length). Since the red side has length , by Pythagoras the blue side has length ; thus, the right triangle is a 30-60-90 triangle, with area .
The two red radii slice out a sector of 30 degrees, with area .
The square consists of 8 right triangles and 4 sectors and one grey shaded area. Thus, the grey shaded area has area
The two red radii slice out a sector of 30 degrees, with area .
The square consists of 8 right triangles and 4 sectors and one grey shaded area. Thus, the grey shaded area has area
Final answer
36 - 12\sqrt{3} - 4\pi