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The phrase "linear equation" takes its origin in this correspondence between lines and equations: a linear equation in two variables is an equation whose solutions form a line. If b ≠ 0, the line is the graph of the function of x that has been defined in the preceding section. If b = 0, the line is a vertical line (that is a line parallel to ...
A linear function is a polynomial function in which the variable x has degree at most one: [2] . Such a function is called linear because its graph, the set of all points in the Cartesian plane, is a line. The coefficient a is called the slope of the function and of the line (see below). If the slope is , this is a constant function defining a ...
Given the two red points, the blue line is the linear interpolant between the points, and the value y at x may be found by linear interpolation. In mathematics, linear interpolation is a method of curve fitting using linear polynomials to construct new data points within the range of a discrete set of known data points.
The equation of a line can be given in vector form: = + Here a is the position of a point on the line, and n is a unit vector in the direction of the line. Then as scalar t varies, x gives the locus of the line. The distance of an arbitrary point p to this line is given by
Slope illustrated for y = (3/2)x − 1.Click on to enlarge Slope of a line in coordinates system, from f(x) = −12x + 2 to f(x) = 12x + 2. The slope of a line in the plane containing the x and y axes is generally represented by the letter m, [5] and is defined as the change in the y coordinate divided by the corresponding change in the x coordinate, between two distinct points on the line.
In two dimensions, the equation for non-vertical lines is often given in the slope–intercept form: = + where: m is the slope or gradient of the line. b is the y-intercept of the line. x is the independent variable of the function y = f(x).
In an equation of the form y' = f ( x , y ), the isoclines are lines in the ( x , y) plane obtained by setting f ( x , y) equal to a constant. This gives a series of lines (for different constants) along which the solution curves have the same gradient. By calculating this gradient for each isocline, the slope field can be visualised; making it ...
There are several possible ways to specify the position of a line in the plane. A simple way is by the pair (m, b) where the equation of the line is y = mx + b. Here m is the slope and b is the y -intercept. This system specifies coordinates for all lines that are not vertical. However, it is more common and simpler algebraically to use ...