Calculate the gradient (slope) of the joining points (-1, 1) and (2, -2)
Answer Details
The gradient or slope of a line is a measure of how steep it is, and is defined as the ratio of the vertical change between two points to the horizontal change between the same two points. To find the gradient of the line that passes through the points (-1, 1) and (2, -2), we need to calculate the difference in the y-coordinates (the vertical change) divided by the difference in the x-coordinates (the horizontal change).
So, the gradient is: (y2 - y1) / (x2 - x1) = (-2 - 1) / (2 - (-1)) = -3 / 3 = -1.
Therefore, the gradient of the line that passes through the points (-1, 1) and (2, -2) is -1.