How Do You Find the Equation of a Plane Through a Point and Containing a Line?

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on finding the equation of a plane that passes through the point (1,3,1) and contains the line defined by the parametric equations x=t, y=t, z=-2+t. The correct approach involves identifying the directional vector of the line, which is (1, 1, 1), and determining a second directional vector by calculating the vector from a point on the line to the given point. The final equation of the plane is expressed as P = (x,y,z) + sd1 + td2, where d1 and d2 are the directional vectors and s and t are scalar multiples.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of vector mathematics
  • Familiarity with parametric equations
  • Knowledge of plane equations in three-dimensional space
  • Ability to calculate directional vectors
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  • Study vector operations and their applications in geometry
  • Learn about parametric equations and their geometric interpretations
  • Explore the derivation of plane equations from points and vectors
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This discussion is beneficial for students and professionals in mathematics, physics, and engineering who are working with three-dimensional geometry and need to understand how to derive equations of planes from points and lines.

kid2
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how do i work this?

find an equation for the plane that passes through the point (1,3,1) and contains the line x=t,y=t,z=-2+t

would the line equation be -2i+t(i+j+k)? and then would that mean that the direction or normal vector for the plane be i+j+k? and then what do you do? i have the answer and i can't get it...
 
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to find the equation of a plane you need to have TWO distinct directional vectors and one point the plane passes through

you have been told that it contains the line - what is the directional vector of that line
you need one more directional vector - a vector between the line and the point will give you this. Pick a point on the given line and find the vector between this point and the given point.
the equation of the plane will look like this

[tex]P = (x,y,z) + sd_{1} + td_{2}[/tex]
where s and t are scalar mutliples, d1 and d2 the directional vectors and x y z is the point

p.s. there are many possible answers
 

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