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Algebra · Simultaneous equations

Chapter 1 · 4

The idea

Simultaneous equations by elimination

Why two unknowns need two equations, why adding or subtracting whole equations is legal, and the sign rule that decides which of the two kills a variable.

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Algebra · Simultaneous equations

Simultaneous equations by elimination

Why two unknowns need two equations, why adding or subtracting whole equations is legal, and the sign rule that decides which of the two kills a variable.

Why it works

Two equations, one pair

One equation with two unknowns has endless solutions — 3x+2y=193x + 2y = 19 is satisfied by whole families of pairs. A SECOND equation cuts the family down to a single pair: the values that satisfy both at once. That's what "simultaneous" means — and elimination is the art of crushing the two equations into one.

Engineered cancellation

If 3x+2y=193x + 2y = 19 and x−2y=1x - 2y = 1, then adding left sides and right sides keeps truth — and look what happens to the yys:

(3x+2y)+(x−2y)=19+1  ⇒  4x=20(3x + 2y) + (x - 2y) = 19 + 1 \;\Rightarrow\; 4x = 20

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