Best Answer: Note that, by solving y^2 = 8x for x, we have:

x = y^2/8.
This shows that a general point on y^2 = 8x takes the form:
(y^2/8, y) for some y.
The distance between (y^2/8, y) and (4, 2) is:
D = [(y^2/8 - 4)^2 + (y - 2)^2], by the distance formula
==> D = (y^4/64 - 4y + 20), by expanding and simplifying.
Then, since (y^4/64 - 4y + 20) is minimized when y^4/64 - 4y + 20 is minimized, we wish to minimize:
S = y^4/64 - 4y + 20.
By differentiating:
dS/dy = y^3/16 - 4.
By setting dS/dy = 0:
y^3/16 - 4 = 0
==> y^3/16 = 4
==> y^3 = 64
==> y = 4.
Then, the x-coordinate of this point is:
x = y^2/8 = 4^2/8 = 2.
Therefore, the point that minimizes the distance is (2, 4) and the required minimum distance is:
D = [(4 - 2)^2 + (2 - 4)^2] = 22.