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Finding the equation of a tangent (Need clarifying) (1 Viewer)

BlueGas

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When finding the equation of a tanget, how should the final answer look like?

Answer 1: x - y + 8 = 0

OR

Answer 2: y = x + 6

What should the answer look like? By the way, I just used any numbers but I just want to know how the equation should look like.
 

Squar3root

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doesn't matter if it is in y = mx + b form or general form if the question doesn't specify
 

nerdasdasd

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When finding the equation of a tanget, how should the final answer look like?

Answer 1: x - y + 8 = 0

OR

Answer 2: y = x + 6

What should the answer look like? By the way, I just used any numbers but I just want to know how the equation should look like.
Doesn't matter ... If they say the general form, then use x - y..
 

DepressedPenguino

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It doesn't really matter but it is prefered in general form the name tells you why :p
 

mohammy52

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They're both equally correct as long as the question doesn't specify which one it wants.

as a side note don't make x the subject like x=2+y, it just doesn't look nice :p
 

photastic

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Both are equally correct if the number was the same. However, it all depends on your teacher and the question ofc.
 

BlueGas

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yes? they're not

not sure if srs

if you add 'y' to both sides in Answer 1; it is not the same as Answer 2
What are you on about? If you add y to both sides in Answer 1 you get y = x + 8, that's the same form as Answer 2.
 

BlueGas

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When finding the equation of a tanget, how should the final answer look like?

Answer 1: x - y + 8 = 0

OR

Answer 2: y = x + 6

What should the answer look like? By the way, I just used any numbers but I just want to know how the equation should look like.
yes it is in the form, but it is not equal to Answer 2
...
 

funnytomato

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When finding the equation of a tanget, how should the final answer look like?

Answer 1: x - y + 8 = 0

OR

Answer 2: y = x + 6

What should the answer look like? By the way, I just used any numbers but I just want to know how the equation should look like.

Either option is fine because they are equivalent forms of the same thing, actually you can see both appearing in BOSTES solutions.

But I personally suggest to leave it in the gradient-intercept form unless the question explicitly asks for the general form, because normally the way you compute the tangent is something like:

Find out the gradient at a point

Then you get , which gives you answer in gradient-intercept form if you just add to both sides and simplify.

To convert from to , it takes more effort and errors could arise in this conversion process.

It's similar to leaving answers as improper fractions or mixed numbers, for example:



 
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