Question

How do you find the slope given (-8, 1/2) and (10, 1/2)?

Answer 1

Use the formula for slope to find slope = `0`

Explanation:

The slope `m` of a line passing through points `(x_1, y_1)` and `(x_2, y_2)` is given by the formula:

`m = (Delta y)/(Delta x) = (y_2-y_1)/(x_2-x_1)`

In our case, let `(x_1, y_1) = (-8,1/2)` and `(x_2, y_2) = (10,1/2)`

Then

`m = (y_2-y_1)/(x_2-x_1) = (1/2 - 1/2)/(10 - (-8)) = 0/18 = 0`

Alternatively, we could have just noted that the `y` coordinate is the same between the two points, but the `x` coordinate is different. So we have a horizontal line, which has slope `0`.

graph{1/2+0.0000001x [-2.5, 2.5, -1.25, 1.25]}