i need help with math

Question

identify an equation in point-slope form for the line perpendicular to y=1/2x+7 that passed through(-3,-2)?

Answer 1

Hey Chase, so you know that any two line that are perpendicular have negative reciprocal slopes. The reciprocal of a fraction is that fraction flipped (numerator becomes denominator). In this case, since the slope of the original line is 1/2, the reciprocal would be 2. Since we are looking for the negative reciprocal however, it would be -2. The slope of the perpendicular line would therefore be -2. BUT, look at what the question is asking: the point slope formula. Recall that this formula is y-y1=m(x-x1). Since m represents the slope, the equation could be reduced to y-y1=-2(x-x1). Now just substitute the points they gave you into the problem (-3,-2). The final answer is y+2=-2(x+3). Let me know if you need any more help!