AoPSWiki
Try our innovative online adaptive learning system, Alcumus.
Over 1100 problems and 60+ video lessons. FREE!

Line

From AoPSWiki

Revision as of 06:59, 4 August 2006 by MCrawford (Talk | contribs)
(diff) ← Older revision | Current revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)

A line in the euclidean sense is defined as the shortest distance between two points. It is defined to be in 1 direction only, i.e. infinitely thin but also infinitely long. In the Cartesian coordinate system, it is usually described as an equation in x and y of the form y=mx+b, where m is the slope of the line and b is the y-intercept. Any two points define a line, and given specific (x_1,y_1) (x_2,y_2) one can solve for the line's equation.


Introductory

Example Problem


See also

Looking for a challenging geometry text? Preparing for MATHCOUNTS or the AMC exams? Check out Art of Problem Solving's Introduction to Geometry by Richard Rusczyk.
© Copyright 2008 AoPS Incorporated. All Rights Reserved. • FoundationPrivacyContact Us