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Section A.5 Finding a Point on a Line

Once we have an equation for a line (especially in point-slope form) we can easily find any point on that line by substituting in a value for \(x\) and solving for \(y\text{.}\) This is a basic but important skill when working with solutions to differential equations. For example, when using Eulerโ€™s method or interpreting a slope field, we often want to know the value of the solution at a particular \(x\)-value.

๐ŸŒŒ Example 337 Finding a Point Given \(x\).

The line \(L\) is given by the equation:
\begin{equation*} y - 3 = -2(x - 5) \end{equation*}
Find the coordinates of the point on \(L\) with \(x = 6\text{.}\)
Solution.
Substitute \(x = 6\) into the equation and solve for \(y\text{:}\)
\begin{align*} y - 3 \amp = -2(6 - 5)\\ y - 3 \amp = -2\\ y \amp = 1 \end{align*}
So the desired point is \((6, 1)\text{.}\)
Use the given equation of a line in point-slope form to find the point on the line with the specified \(x\)-value.

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