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| Math Central | Quandaries & Queries |
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Question from samantha, a student: the equations of two lines are 6x-y=4 and y=4x +2.what is the value of x in the solution for this system of equations? |
Hi Samantha,
First of all let me rewrite the first equation 6x - y = 4. Add y to both sides to get 6x - y + y = 4 + y or 6x = y + 4. Now add -4 to each side to get 6x - 4 = y. Hence the two lines have equations
y = 6x - 4 and
y = 4x + 2.
A solution to this system of equations is a pair of numbers (x, y) that satisfy the equations. Hence if I knew the value x and substituted it into the two equations I would get the same valve each time, y. That is
6x - 4 and 4x + 2 are the same number.
Thus
6x - 4 = 4x + 2.
Solve for x.
Penny
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