ShmoopTube

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Here's your shmoop du jour, extra crackers included...

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Solve this system: 3x - y = 2 6x - 2y = 5

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And here are the potential answers...

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OK so whenever we're given two equations and

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are told to solve the system, we're actually trying to solve for the point of intersection

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of the two equations.

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Elimination is one method of solving equations, so let's try that first.

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Multiply the first equation by 2... and we get 6x minus 2y equals 4.

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But wait... that looks almost exactly the second equation, except the 4 isn't a 5.

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What does that mean?

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Well, whenever we see that two equations in standard form have the same coefficients in

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front of their variables, we know that these two lines are parallel.

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If two lines are parallel, they have no point of intersection... so there is no solution

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for this problem.

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Looks like E's our answer.

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Drive safe, and watch those points of intersection, everyone.

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