Chapter 6.2, Problem 61SR

To determine

Determine whether each segment is a side or diagonal of the quadrilateral, and find the slope of $\overline{YW}$

Answer to Problem 61SR

  $\overline{YW}$ is diagonal and its slope is $-\frac{4}{5}$ .

Explanation of Solution

Given:

The vertices of a quadrilateral are $W(3,-1),X(4,2),Y(-2,3)$ and $Z(-3,0).$

Formula Used:

The slope of a segment joining points $(x_1,y_1)\text{ and }(x_2,y_2)$ is $m=\frac{y_2-y_1}{x_2-x_1}$ .

Calculation:

Draw the quadrilateral WXYZ :

The segment $\overline{YW}$ is diagonal of the quadrilateral WXYZ.

Now, slope of segment $\overline{YW}$ joining $Y(-2,3)$ and $W(3,-1)$ is $\frac{-1-3}{3-(-2)}=\frac{-4}{5}=-\frac{4}{5}$ .