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If the y-intercepts are the same, then two lines are coinciding exactly the same line.
Perpendicular Lines and Their Slopes
Straight lines will be perpendicular if
their slopes have opposite signs -- one positive and one negative, and
they are reciprocals of one another.
That is: If m is the slope of one line, then a perpendicular line has slope 1/m or
m1 x m2 = -1
To be specific, if a line has slope 4, then every line that is perpendicular to it has slope .
Particular Case
If a straight line passes through the origin, then its y-intercept is 0. So, the equation of a straight line
passing through the origin is y = mx, where m is the slope of the line.
Example 1
Solution:
Since the equation has slope and intercept, we call y = mx + b the slope-intercept form.
Example 2
Use the slope-intercept method: graph y = 2x.
So, the straight line passes through (0, 0). Use this point to draw a line of slope 2 (i.e. go across 3
units and up 6 units).
Note:
It is simpler to find the run and rise if we start from the y-intercept.
Example 3
Calculate the slope of the straight line given in the following diagram; and find its equation.
Solution:
Example 4
Write the slope-intercept form of the equation of the line with slope 3 and which passes through the
point (1, 4). Use the direct method.
The equation will have the form y = mx + b
We are given that m = 3. Therefore, the equation is y = 3x + b.
Now we must determine b.
We are given that (1, 4) is a point on the line. Those coordinates, then, solve the equation:
4 = 31 + b
This implies b = 7.
The equation of the line is y = 3x 7.
Class practice: Write the slope-intercept form of the equation of the line with slope 1 and which
passes through the point (8, 2).
We are given that m = 1 and that (x1, y1) = (8, 2).
Substitute m = 1: y = mx + b y = -x + b
Substitute (x1, y1) = (8, 2): -2 = -(-8) + b b = -10
Therefore, the equation of the line is y = -x 10.
2) The point-slope formula.
Let (x, y) be any point on the line. And let (x1, y1) be a given point on the line.
y
is equal to the slope m of the line.
x
This is called the point-slope formula for the equation of a straight line. We can use the formula
when we know the slope m of the line and one point (x1, y1) on it.
Example 5
We are given that m = 2 and that (x1, y1) = (1, 3).
Therefore, according to the point-slope formula: y -(-3)= 2
x-1
We must solve this for y:
y + 3 = 2(x 1) = 2x 2
This implies y = 2x 5. This is the equation of the line.
3) The two-point formula.
Let (x1, y1) and (x2, y2) be two given points, and let (x, y) be any point on the line. Then the slope
joining one of the given points and any point, is equal to the slope joining the two given points.
This is called the two-point formula for the equation of a straight line. We can use it to determine the
equation when we know two points. We may choose (x1, y1) to be either one of them.
Example 6
Find the equation of the line joining the points (2, 3) and (4, 7).
Solution:
y 3 2x 4
y 3
2
x2
y 2x 1
y 3 2( x 2)
Class practice: Find the equation of the line joining the two points (1, 5) and (4, 17).
y 5 17 5
x 1
4 1
y 5
4
x 1
y 5 4x 4
y 4x 1
y 5 4( x 1)
Example 8
Determine whether the equation is linear y = x2- 4 or not.
If we subtract the x squared from both sides, we would end up with x 2 y 4 . Is this a linear
equation? Note how we have an x squared as opposed to x to the one power.
It looks like we cannot write it in the form Ax + By = C because the x has to be to the one power, not
squared. So this is not a linear equation.
perpendicular: y = ( 3/2 ) x + 5
5) Families of Lines
We always need at least two pieces of information to find the unique equation. If we are only given
one, then we will be able to find a family of lines all possible lines that satisfies the condition. We
will have an unknown constant (parameter) in our equation.
Example 10
Determine the equation for the family of lines having y-intercept 2.
The equation y = mx +2, for different real values of m, represents a family of lines with y-intercept 2
units. A few members of this family are shown in figure below.
Example 11
Find the equation of the family of lines with x-intercept -4.
Since the x-intercept of the family is given to be -4, therefore, each member of the family passes
through the point (-4, 0).
By using point-slope form, the equation of such a family of lines is y -0 = m (x -(-4)) i.e. y = m (x +4),
where m is a parameter.
Note:
The above equation of the family does not give the vertical line through the point (-4, 0). However,
the equation of this line is x = -4 i.e. x +4 = 0.
Therefore, y = m(x + 4) or x = -4.