Given x^2 + y = 0, is y a function of x? Is x a function of y? How do you do this without vertical line test?
So y = - x^2 ( upside down parabola of y = x^2)
so x^2 = - y
Therefore x = +/- sqrt(-y) = 2 distinct value except for y = 0
i.e. for every nonzero y, x has 2 distinct values.
That means x is not a function of y, since to be a function of y, every value of y
must lead to one and only one value of x.