Question

Find the direction in which a straight line must be drawn through the point (–1, 2) so that its point of intersection with the line x + y = 4 may be at a distance of 3 units from this point.

Answer 1

Let y = mx + c be the line through point (–1, 2).
Accordingly, 2 = m (–1) + c.
⇒ 2 = –m + c
⇒ c = m + 2
∴ y = mx + m + 2 ……………………..… (1)
The given line is
x + y = 4 ………………………………….. (2)
On solving equations (1) and (2), we obtain

Since this point is at a distance of 3 units from point (– 1, 2), according to distance formula,

Thus, the slope of the required line must be zero i.e., the line must be parallel to the x-axis.