jjjinapinch wrote:Lines k and m are parallel to each other. Is the slope of line k positive?
(1) Line k passes through the point (3, 2).
(2) Line m passes through the point (-3, 2).
Official Guide question
Answer: E
We are given that lines k and m are parallel to each other, and when two lines are parallel, they have the same slope. We must determine whether the slope of line k is positive.
Statement One Alone:
Line k passes through the point (3, 2).
Using the information in statement one, the slope of line k can be positive or negative. An infinite number of lines can pass through the point (3, 2), some of which have positive slopes and some of which have negative slopes. Statement one alone is not sufficient to answer the question.
Statement Two Alone:
Line m passes through the point (-3, 2).
Using the information in statement two, we know that the slope of line m can be positive or negative. An infinite number of lines can pass through the point (-3, 2), some of which have positive slopes and some of which have negative slopes. Statement two alone is not sufficient to answer the question. We can eliminate answer choice B.
Statements One and Two Together:
Using the information in statements one and two, we know that line k passes through (3, 2) and line m passes through (-3, 2). However, we still do not have enough information to determine whether the slope of line k is positive or negative, since both lines can have positive slopes or both can have negative slopes.
Thus, statements one and two together are not sufficient to answer the question.
Answer:
E
