Question 101·Medium·Linear Equations in Two Variables
In the -plane, line passes through and is parallel to the line with equation . What is the -intercept of line ?
For parallel-line questions, first rewrite the given line in slope-intercept form to read its slope quickly. Remember that parallel lines share the same slope, then plug the given point into either or the point-slope form to find the new line’s equation. Finally, rewrite the result as and take the constant term as the y-intercept, being careful with fraction and sign arithmetic.
Hints
Rewrite the given line
Try rewriting in the form . What is the coefficient of in that form?
Use the idea of parallel lines
Parallel lines in the coordinate plane always have the same slope. Once you know the slope of the given line, you also know the slope of line .
Use the point given on line k
Use the slope you found and the point in either point-slope form or slope-intercept form to find the new line's equation.
Identify the y-intercept
Once you have line in the form , the -intercept is the constant term . Focus on that value.
Desmos Guide
Graph the original line to confirm its slope
In Desmos, enter 4x-3y=12. Then, in a new line, enter y=(4/3)x-4. You should see that this second equation lies exactly on top of the first, confirming the slope is .
Set up a generic parallel line
In another expression line, type y=(4/3)x+b. Desmos will create a slider for b; this represents all lines parallel to the original one.
Force the line to pass through the given point
Add the point (2,-1) as a new expression so you can see it on the graph. Then adjust the b slider until the line y=(4/3)x+b passes exactly through the point (2,-1).
Read the y-intercept from Desmos
Once the line goes through (2,-1), look at the current value of b in y=(4/3)x+b. That value of b is the -intercept of line .
Step-by-step Explanation
Find the slope of the given line
Rewrite the equation in slope-intercept form :
Subtract from both sides:
Divide every term by :
So the slope of the given line is .
Use the slope and the given point to write line k
Line is parallel to the given line, so it has the same slope .
Line passes through , so use the point-slope form :
which simplifies the left side to
Convert to slope-intercept form and read the y-intercept
Distribute on the right-hand side:
So the equation is
Subtract 1 from both sides:
Write as to combine fractions:
In slope-intercept form , the -intercept is , so the -intercept of line is .