Heart of Algebra

1. Slope of a Line：

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2. Slope and Steepness: A slope with a greater absolute value indicates a steeper line. The direction of
a line is either increasing, decreasing, horizontal or vertical. If a line is horizontal, the slope is zero. If a

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line is vertical, the slope is undefined.

3. Parallel and Perpendicular Lines: The slopes of parallel lines are equal, and the slopes of two
non-vertical perpendicular lines are negative reciprocal of each other.

4. Interpreting the Slope: In the function , for each unit increase in (in context), there
is a corresponding unit increase in (in context).

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5. Point-Slope Form of a Line: The equation of the line with slope and passing through the point
can be written as .

6. Mixture Word Problems: Mass percentage is calculated as the mass of the solute divided by the
total mass of the mixture, multiplied by 100%. When two solutions of different mass percentages mix,
an equation can be written of the form considering the fact that the
mass of the solute in the mixed solution is the sum of the masses of the solute in each solution.
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7. Solution to an Equation in One Variable: The equation of the form has
one and only one solution when , infinitely many solutions when and , or
no solutions when and .

8. Solution to a System of Linear Equations: A system of linear equations has (1) one solution
when the two lines represented by each equation intersect at a point (different slopes), (2) no solution
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when the two lines are parallel (equal slopes but different -intercepts), or (3) infinitely many
solutions when the two lines coincide (equal slopes and equal -intercepts).

9. Adding & Subtracting Compound Inequalities: Inequalities with the same direction can be
added, so if and , then . To work with , think of it as
and we obtain the result .
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10. Inequality Word Problems: First read through the question, circle any numbers and key phases
used to make non-equal comparisons (e.g., be greater/less than, at least, at most, up to, no more than),
which often appear before numbers; then write inequalities to represent the situations described in the
question. Match your inequalities with graphs at last if required.

11. Meaning of Absolute Values: The absolute value of a number , written , is the distance the
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number is from the origin on a number line; the absolute value of the difference of two real numbers
and , written , equals the distance between the two numbers on a number line.

12. Writing a Compound Inequality as an Absolute Value Inequality: Find the midpoint and half
the distance between the extremes of the inequality, then form a single absolute value inequality based
on the distance between the variable and the midpoint, i.e.,
Problem Solving and Data Analysis
13. Percentage Change: Subtract the old value from the new, then divide by the old value (not the new
value!) and make it a percentage.

14. Calculating Fraction or Probability Based on a Table: Carefully read the last sentence in the

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question to find out from which target group the participant or object will be chosen and the chosen
participant or object will belong to which subgroup. The denominator will be the total number of
participants or objects in the target group, while the numerator will be the number of participants or

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objects in the subgroup.

15. Median: The median of numbers is the middle number when the numbers are written in order. The
median is at position . If this position is a whole number then you have the median at that
position in the list. If the number ends in 0.5 then you average the two numbers on the list on either
side of it.

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16. Mode: The mode of a data set is the number or numbers that occur most frequently.

17. Outlier: An outlier is a value that is much greater than or much less than most of the other values in a
data set.

18. Comparing the Mean and Median: The mean and median of a roughly symmetric distribution are
close together. If the distribution is exactly symmetric, the mean and median are exactly the same. In a
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skewed distribution, the mean is usually farther out in the long tail than is the median.

19. Range: The range of a set of data is the difference between the largest and smallest values.

20. Comparing Standard Deviations: When asked to compare the standard deviations of two data
sets, first locate the mean approximately. Then, ask yourself which data set has values that are more
closely clustered around the mean. That data set will have the smaller standard deviation.
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21. Transformation of Data: When a constant is added to every value in a data set, the range and
standard deviation are unchanged. When each value of a data set is multiplied by a positive constant,
the standard deviation is multiplied by the same constant.

22. Scatterplot and the Line (or Curve) of Best Fit: The actual values are represented by the dots on
the scatterplot, while the predicted values are given by the line (or curve) of best fit.
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23. Simple Random Sampling: Simple random sampling is defined as a sampling technique where
each individual in the population has the same probability of being chosen. A sample chosen randomly
is meant to be an unbiased representation of the total population.

24. Cause and Effect: A cause-and-effect relationship can only be established through a controlled
experiment, where an independent variable (the cause) is systematically manipulated, the dependent
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variable (the effect) is measured, and any extraneous variables are controlled. The results of an
experiment can be generalized to the entire population only if it is conducted on a random sample
from the population in question.

25. Margin of Error: The margin of error is a statistic expressing the amount of random sampling error
in the results of a survey when inferring population parameters. Margin of error at a given confidence
level, which measures how confident we are in the margin of error, decreases as sample size increases
because a larger sample provides more information about the population.
Passport to Advanced Math
26. Factorisation: First take out any common factor from the expression to be factorised, then (1) for a
binomial, look for the difference of two squares; (2) for a trinomial, use the criss-cross method; or (3)
for an algebraic expression containing four terms, factorise by grouping the terms into pairs.

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27. Function Notation: The variable or expression inside the parentheses after letter (name of the
function) is used for the input in the function. Letter is not necessarily the symbol for input. Take
as an example, the function produces an output of when (not ) is
input into it.

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28. Quadratic Function in Standard Form: , the graph intercepts the -axis at

the point and has the vertex at .

29. Quadratic Function in Vertex Form: , the graph has a vertex at point
, which means the function attains its maximum or minimum value when .

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30. Quadratic Function in Intercept Form: , the graph intercepts the -axis
at point and point and has a vertex at .

31. Intersection of a Line and a Parabola: The number of points of intersection of a line and a
parabola equals the number of solutions to the linear-quadratic system. First solve the linear equation
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for (or ) and substitute (or ) in the quadratic function, then analyze the sign of the discriminant (
) of the resulting quadratic equation. If the discriminant is positive, the line meets the
parabola in two distinct points; if it is zero, the line touches the parabola at one point; if it is negative,
the line does not intersect the parabola at all.

32. Zeros of a Polynomial: The terms zero, factor, solution, and -intercept are closely related
concepts. Let be a polynomial function. The following statements are equivalent.
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Zero: is a zero of the polynomial function;

Factor: is a factor of the polynomial;
Solution: is a solution of the polynomial equation ;
-intercept: If is a real number, is an -intercept of the graph of the polynomial function .
The graph of passes through .
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33. Polynomial Remainder Theorem: When the polynomial is divided by , the remainder
equals .

34. Polynomial Factor Theorem and its Converse: If for polynomial , then
must be a factor of the polynomial. The converse of this theorem is also true. That is, if is a factor
of polynomial , then .
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35. Operations with Rational Expressions: First factorize numerators and denominators of all
expressions. For multiplication and division, divide out common factor if possible, and use long
division or remainder theorem if necessary. To add and subtract rational expressions with unlike
denominators, rewrite each rational expression using the least common denominator (LCD). Then add
or subtract.

36. Simplifying Complex Fractions: Multiply the numerator and the denominator by the least
common denominator (LCD) of every fraction in the numerator and denominator. Then simplify.
37. Linear versus Exponential Model: Examine the change in the quantity between successive time
periods. If the difference in the quantity is constant, the model is linear. If the ratio in the quantity is
constant, the model is exponential. Focus on the wording used to describe the change. Words like
“double”, “triple”, “times”, and “percent” are indicators of an exponential model, while phrases like “at
a constant rate” and “increase by every days” imply a linear model.

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38. Exponential Growth/Decay in General Form: , the initial value of is
, and the value of increases (or decreases) by percent every units of time.

39. Extraneous Solution: An extraneous solution, which emerges from the process of solving an

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equation but is not a valid solution to the equation, must be rejected. Always check for extraneous
solutions in the original equation when you solve an absolute value equation, a rational equation, or a
radical equation. If it is a multiple-choice question, just plug in the numbers from the four answer
choices to find the valid solution.

40. Matching a Graph to a Function: (1) Observe the end behavior of the function (the behavior of the

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graph as approaches positive infinity or negative infinity) or see if the graph has any vertical or
horizontal asymptotes, and eliminate the answer choices that do not match. (2) See the graph for its
behavior near zeros, note that the graph of a polynomial function will touch but not cross the -axis at
zeros with even multiplicity. Alternatively, find the -coordinates of one or two points on the graph,
such as -intercept, then evaluate the remaining functions for the right match.

41. Translation of a Graph: When a graph of a function or an equation is translated units to the
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right, substitute ‘ ’ for ‘ ’ in the original form to obtain the new function or equation; when it is
translated units up, substitute ‘ ’ for ‘ ’ to obtain the new function or equation.

Additional Topics in Math

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42. Midpoint Formula: The midpoint of point and point is .

43. Distance Formula: The distance between point ​and point ​is
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44. Complementary Angles: If and are complementary angles ( ), then .

45. Radian Measure: One radian is the angle subtended at the center of a circle by an arc that is equal in
length to the radius of the circle, and it follows that and .

46. Arc Length and the Area of a Sector: The length of the arc (or the area of the sector) formed by
central angle radians (or ) is (or ) of the circumference (or area) of the circle.
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47. Equation of a Circle in General Form: Reduce the coefficients of the quadratic terms in the
equation to 1 if needed, then complete the squares to convert the general form into center-radius form
and find the center and radius of the circle.

48. Complex Numbers: To rationalize the denominator of a complex quotient, multiply both the
numerator and denominator by the complex conjugate of the denominator, i.e.,