Equations that Meet on a Graph
Date: 03/09/2002 at 19:38:13 From: Karyn Subject: Slopes How am I supposed to graph d = 30t and d = 28t+12? I don't understand how to graph them. d is distance and t is time. The two equations are supposed to meet on the graph. I tried the question by starting on the origin and then going to 30 for the first equation and for the second equation I went over 12 and then went up 28. The two equations didn't meet. I need help with them meeting on the graph and how they are supposed to be graphed.
Date: 03/09/2002 at 20:25:20 From: Doctor Jeremiah Subject: Re: Slopes Hi Karyn: d is called the dependant variable, because it depends on whatever value of t you put in. The dependant variable is always the vertical height on the graph. Most of the time the height is a variable called y but it doesn't have to be; in this case it's d. t is called the independant variable, because it does not depend on anything; you just put in values for t. The independant variable is always the distance across horizontally on the graph. Most of the time the height is a variable called x but it doesn't have to be; in this case it's t. So to plot a point on the graph you decide on a value for t and figure out what the corresponding value of d is equal to. You should do this for as many values of t as possible. Then you connect the dots. When you have two equations, do them separately, one after the other. That way when you connect the dots you won't get confused. So, for example, using d = 30t you would pick values for t and get corresponding values for d that you can plot: across (t) height (d) -------------------------------- -3 -90 -2 -60 -1 -30 0 0 1 30 2 60 3 90 And when you plot the these points, it looks like this: | 90 -|- X (3,90) | | 60 -|- X (2,60) | | 30 -|- X (1,30) | 3 2 1 | -----|-----|-----|-----X-----|-----|-----|----- | 1 2 3 | (-1,-30) X -|- -30 | | (-2,-60) X -|- -60 | | (-3,-90) X -|- -90 | Now you connect these points and then you can do the second equation and connect those points. Then you can find the intersection. - Doctor Jeremiah, The Math Forum http://mathforum.org/dr.math/
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