Here’s How to Crack It
You can use the formula for the midpoint of a line segment: . If you forget it, try to
remember that you are just taking the average of the x-coordinates of the two points to get the x-coordinate
of the midpoint, and doing the same for the y-coordinates. For the x-coordinates, the average of 3 and 0 is
(3 + 0) ÷ 2 = 1.5. Only one answer has this for the x-coordinate: (A). Don’t waste time calculating the y-
coordinate if you don’t have to!
The distance formula looks quite complicated. The easiest way to solve the distance between two points
is to connect them and form a triangle. Then use the Pythagorean Theorem. Many times, the triangle
formed is one of the common Pythagorean triplets (3-4-5 or 5-12-13).
Let’s try a distance formula question.
3.Which of the following points lies the greatest distance from the origin in the xy-plane?A)B) (–1, –1)
C)
D) (0, 1)
Here’s How to Crack It
Draw the line between the origin and the point in each answer choice and use the technique described
above to see which has the longest hypotenuse. Choice (A) would look like this: