- #1
VonWeber
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Homework Statement
I was tutoring a student and could not answer one of his questions. Prove that y = mx +- square root( a^2*m^2 + b^2 ) is the equation for two lines passing through an ellipse
Homework Equations
(x/a)^2 + (y/b)^2 = 1 is the equation of an ellipse
The Attempt at a Solution
I started by suggesting he implicitly differentiate the equation for an ellipse and put it in the point slope equation, but it turned out to give an equation for dy/dx = m, but not the desired equation. I worked on different approaches at home for half an hour, but I'm stumped.