Cartesian Coordinate System Flashcards
composed of two axes intersecting and perpendicular to eachother. Note that when we say“perpendicular”, it means the lines form right angles or L-shaped angles. The horizontal axis (i.e., the horizontal line) that you see is called the X-axis. On the other hand, the vertical axis (i.e., the vertical line) is called the Y-axis.
Cartesian coordinate system
A point in the coordinate plane is also called
coordinate or an ordered pair
Example 1:Determine the abscissa and ordinate of (1, 4). Afterward, plot the point in the coordinate plane.
Solution:The abscissa is the x-coordinate of (1, 4) which is 1. On the other hand, the ordinate is the y-coordinate of (1, 4) which is 4. To plot (1, 4) in the coordinate plane, we count 1 unit to the right of the origin and move 4 units upward.
Example 2:Plot (-2, -1) in the coordinate plane.
Solution:To plot (-2, -1) in the coordinate plane, we count 2 units on the left of the origin and move one unit downward.
Example 3:Try to plot the following points by yourself:
A. (3, -1)
B. (1, 0)
C. (-2, 1)
D. (0, 5)
Answer
If you look closely at the coordinate plane, you will notice that the entire rectangular plane is divided into four sections. These sections are called the
quadrants of the coordinate plane.
The quadrants of the coordinate plane are arranged in a counter-clockwise manner. The first quadrant is the quadrant where the positive portions of the X-axis and Y-axis are located. The following list provides an overview of all four quadrants:
All coordinates with positive first and second components are in thefirst quadrant.All coordinates with a negative first component and a positive second component are in thesecond quadrant.All coordinates with negative first and second components are in thethird quadrant.All coordinates with a positive first component and a negative second component are in thefourth quadrant.
Example:In which quadrant can you locate (-2, 1)?
Solution:(-2, 1) has a negative first component and a positive second component. Therefore, we can locate (-2, 1) in the second quadrant of the coordinate plane.
Example:Form a straight line using the points (2, 3) and (5, 1).
Solution:We start by plotting the points in the coordinate plane.
Afterwards, we connect the points to form a straight line.
There you go! We have just graphed a line that passes through the points (2, 3) and (5, 1).
the part of the line that touches the X-axis and Y-axis. For instance, look at the graph ofx + y = 10again:
Intercepts of a Linear Equation
the point where the line touches the x-axis
x-intercept
the point where the line touches the y-axis.
y-intercept
Example:Solve for the intercepts of the line x + 2y = 8.
Solution:To solve for the x-intercept of the line, set y = 0
x + 2y = 8
x + 2(0) = 8Set y = 0
x = 8
Hence, the x-intercept is (8, 0).
On the other hand, to find the y-intercept, we letx = 0
x + 2y = 12
(0) + 2y = 8Set x = 0
2y = 8
2y⁄2 = 8⁄2Divide both sides by 2
y = 4
Hence, the y-intercept is (0, 4).
Example:Graph the line 2x + 5y = 10 using its intercepts.
Solution:Let us start by solving for thexandy-intercepts:
As shown in the computation above, the intercepts are (5, 0) and (0, 2).
We then plot these intercepts in the coordinate plane and connect them to form a straight line:
tells us the direction and steepness of the line.
Slope of a Line
When determining the slope of a line, remember the following:
If the value ofmis positive (i.e.,m > 0):This means that the graph of the line is rising to the right.If the value ofmis negative (i.e.,m < 0):This means that the graph of the line is rising to the left.If the value ofmis zero (i.e.,m = 0):This means that the graph of the line is horizontal.If the value ofmis undefined (this happens when the denominator turns out to be zero):This means that the graph of the line is vertical.The larger the absolute value ofm,the steeper the line is.
Example 1:What is the slope of the line containing the points (1, 2) and (3, 5)?
Solution:
We havey1= 2, y2= 5, x1= 1, and x2= 3.
Using the slope formula:
Therefore, the slope is 3/2.
Note that 3/2 is positive. This means that the graph of the line will be rising to the right. You may try to graph the line using the given points and verify that the line is indeed rising to the right.
Example 2:Compute for the slope of the line containing the points (-1, 5) and (0, 1).
Solution:
We havey1= 5,x1= -1, y2= 1,andx2= 0
Using the slope formula:
Therefore, the slope is -4/1 or -4.
Since we have a negative slope, this implies that the graph of the line will be rising to the left.
Example 3:Compute for the slope of the line containing the points (5, 1) and (5, 5).
Solution:
Using the slope formula:
Since the slope we have computed is undefined, this means that the graph of the line will be a vertical line.
Note:If the given points of the line have the same abscissa or first coordinate, the graph of that line is a vertical line and its slope is undefined. On the other hand, if the given points have the same ordinate or second coordinate, the graph of that line is a horizontal line and its slope is 0.
Example 4:Identify the slope of the line that contains the points (3, 4) and (7, 4).
Solution:Notice that the given points of the line have the same ordinate or second coordinate (both are 4). This implies that the slope of the line that contains this points is equal to 0.
To verify, let’s use the slope formula:
Here, we have x1= 3, x2= 7, y1= 4, and y2= 4.
Substituting these values in the slope formula:
Indeed, the slope of the line in the given problem is 0.
Example 1:Determine the slope of the linear equation
2x + y = 10.
Solution:
The first step is to isolateyfrom other quantities. This means thatyshould be the only variable on the left-hand side of the equation. This is possible by transposing2xto the right-hand side of the equation:
2x + y = 10
y = -2x + 10Transposing 2x to the right-hand side
By havingyas the only quantity remaining on the left-hand side, we can successfully write the equation in its slope-intercept form. For the given equation,y = -2x + 10is its slope-intercept form.
To find the slope, we take the coefficient of thexterm in the slope-intercept form of the given equation. Thexterm iny = -2x + 10is-2xand the numerical coefficient is–2.
Therefore the slope is -2 orm = -2.
Since the slope is negative, it is expected that if we graph2x + y = 10in the coordinate plane, the graph will be a line rising to the left.
Example 2:What is the slope of the linear equation
3x – y = 11?
Solution:
We start by isolatingyfrom other quantities by transposing3xto the right-hand side of the equation:
We have now written the given linear equation in its slope-intercept form. Now, we can take the numerical coefficient of thexterm and it would be the slope of our line.
Since thexterm ofy = 3x – 11is3xand its numerical coefficient is 3, then our slope must be 3.
Thus, the slope of the given linear equation is 3.
If two linear equations have the same slope, then the graph of these lines will show
Parallel Lines
Suppose we have two linear equations,x + 3y = 6andx + 3y = 12.
First, let us transform both of these equations into their slope-intercept form so we can determine their respective slopes:
x + 3y = 6
3y = -x + 6Transposing x to the right-hand side
y = -⅓x + 6Dividing both sides by 3
Slope is -⅓
x + 3y = 12
3y = -x + 12Transposing x to the right-hand side
y = -⅓x + 12Dividing both sides by 3
Slope is -⅓
Based on our computations above, the linear equationsx + 3y = 6andx + 3y = 12have the same or equal slopes (which is -⅓).
Since these linear equations have the same slope, then their graphs are parallel lines or lines that will not intersect.
Indeed, the graphs of the linear equationsx + 3y = 6andx + 3y = 12are parallel lines as shown in our illustration above.