Is the slope of line N bigger than that of line P? 1. Both

Question

1. Is the slope of line N bigger than that of line P?

1. Both the 2 line pass through the point (3,2)

2. The intercept on y-axis of line N is bigger than that of P.





?? - In this problem do we have to take into account the fact that slope can be + ve or - ve .......or are we just trying to decide whether the absolute value of the slope of line N is bigger that the absolute value of the slope of line P ....... Cant seem to decide between C and E...

ruhi · Answer

WEll we have to consider negative values too. Slopes can be both positive and negative.

Im getting C....

ruhi · Answer

sorry , its E.

consider the foloowing examples.

Let b1>b2 (b= intercept on y axis)
a1, a2= intercept on x axis.

s1,s2= their slopes.

1)b1=4, b2=2
b1>b2
considering the form x/a1+y/b1=1,
a1=6 , s1=-2/3

b2=2, we get a2=3, s2=-2/3
hence slopes are same.

2)b1=-1, a1=-3, s1=-1/3
 let b2=-5, a2=15/7, s2= 7/3
here s2>s1

Hence both the statements together are insuff.

Hence, E

ian7777 · Answer

how can both lines have the same slope if they have different y intercepts? You used 4 and 2, they must have different slopes.

I think the answer is C...

No matter how I did it, like p came up with a larger slope than line N. 

and we don't have to use numbers to do this. Just draw the thing out, and use what you know about slope to evaluate the lines you've drawn. It'll work every time.

I'll post a diagram if someone requests it.

twixt · Answer

I agree with Ian and choose C. We know that these 2 lines intersect in (3,2). As they have only this point in common they necessarily have different slopes whatever the biggest one is.

MA · Answer

The OA is E because from 1, the slope of the se lines cound be any. so we cannot say which has the bigger slope.

from 2 also we cannot say which line has the bigger slope. a line with bigger intercept can have negative slop and another line may have smaller intercept but positive intercept.

combining both statements also doesnot give the clear answer. therefore, the answer is E.

nocilis · Answer

1) Equation of a line: Y = mx + C where C is the y intercept and m is the slope

 Line N is y= m1x + C1 
 Line P is y = m2x +C2
Since they both pass through (3,2)
N: 2 = 3m1 + C1
P: 2 = 3m2 + C2
This means that 3m1 + C1 = 3 m2 + C2
Dividing by 3,
m1 + C1/3 = m2 + C2/3

We can't get any valid answer from this. But we can use this later when we examine 2)

2) Y Intercept of N > Y Intercept of P
C1> C2 
=> using the equation derived from 1) m1 has to be less than m2

So, it is C)

Sargataur · Answer

just throug vizualization and a lil bit of graph sketiching i was cnvicnend E was the asnwer but with nocilis' excellent explanation ,,,,,it seems C is indeed the asnwer ,,admin or expert comment

Sargataur · Answer

not sure if u can rquate the two lines though just becoz they pass thru 3.2

nocilis · Answer

The equations are equated because both of them equal to 2 
(N: 2 = 3m1 + C1 
P: 2 = 3m2 + C2)

ian7777 · Answer

I personally don't think the formulas are necessary here. Simply sketching the situation and understanding what slope is all about should tell us the whole story. Here's my sketch - more advanced than I'd do on the real test but for these purposes...I hope this all makes sense.

What we can see is that with C, under all conditions, p is larger than n, so the answer is definately no.

 https://www.integratedlearning.net/gmatclub/slopeoflines.gif

Is the slope of line N bigger than that of line P? 1. Both

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