Question 123·Hard·Systems of Two Linear Equations in Two Variables
The system of equations is
For each real number , which of the following points lies on the graph of each equation in the -plane?
For systems where the question asks for a point that lies on each equation for all real values of a parameter, first check if the equations are multiples of each other; if they are, they represent the same line and you only need the general form of one line. Solve one equation for one variable in terms of the other (for example, solve for in terms of ), then rewrite that general solution using the parameter symbol (here ) and match it to the choice that expresses exactly that relationship for every real value of the parameter.
Hints
Compare the two equations
Look at the coefficients in both equations. Is the second equation just a multiple of the first one?
Solve one equation for y
Use the first equation and solve it for in terms of . This will show you the general form of any point on the line.
Use r as the variable
Once you have written in terms of , think of as . What ordered pair does that create for an arbitrary real number ?
Compare to the choices
Look at each answer choice and see which one has the same relationship between its two coordinates as the one you found between and .
Desmos Guide
Graph both equations
Enter 9x + 4y = 18 and -18x - 8y = -36 into Desmos. You should see that the two equations produce exactly the same line (the graphs overlap).
Find the line’s slope-intercept form
Either do the algebra by hand or in Desmos: rewrite the first equation as y = (-9/4)x + 9/2. This shows the relationship between and for every point on the line.
Test the answer choices with a slider
Create a slider r in Desmos. For each answer choice, type its coordinate rule using r in Desmos (for example, (r, expression in r) or (expression in r, r)) and see whether the point always lies on the graphed line as you move the r slider. The correct choice is the one whose point stays on the line for all values of r you test.
Step-by-step Explanation
Notice the relationship between the two equations
Compare the two equations:
If you multiply the first equation by , you get:
This is exactly the second equation. That means both equations represent the same line, so any solution of one is a solution of the other.
Write the line in slope-intercept form
Take the first equation and solve for in terms of :
Now split the fraction:
So every point on this line has coordinates of the form .
Match the general point on the line to an answer choice
We found that any point on the line can be written as .
In the answer choices, is just a placeholder for any real number, the same way is. So if we let , a point on the line becomes
This matches choice , which is therefore the correct answer.