To find the midpoint of line segment overline AB Fernando calculated 6.4 + (- 2.5) = 3.9 What should his next step be?

Fernando has already made a mistake. He should have subtracted the x-values to get 8.9.

Fernando has already made a mistake. He should have calculated 6.4+2.5=8.9.

Fernando should subtract the y-values.

Fernando should divide 3.9 by 2, then repeat both steps using the y-values.

1 answer

Fernando initially calculated \( 6.4 + (-2.5) = 3.9 \) which seems to be an attempt to calculate a component of the midpoint formula, but it looks like he was calculating incorrectly for the midpoint steps.

To find the midpoint of a line segment defined by two endpoints \( A(x_1, y_1) \) and \( B(x_2, y_2) \), the formula is:

\[ \text{Midpoint} = \left(\frac{x_1 + x_2}{2}, \frac{y_1 + y_2}{2}\right) \]

Given that he has already made a mistake with the x-values, here’s what he should do:

  1. Correctly calculate the sum of the x-values (assuming \( x_1 = 6.4 \) and \( x_2 = 2.5 \)): \( 6.4 + 2.5 = 8.9 \).
  2. Divide the sum by 2 to find the x-coordinate of the midpoint: \( \frac{8.9}{2} = 4.45 \).
  3. Next, he should apply the same process for the y-values to find the y-coordinate of the midpoint.

So, the appropriate next step is:

Fernando should divide 3.9 by 2, then repeat both steps using the y-values.

Given that calculating \( 3.9 \) doesn't connect directly to the correct steps, focusing on the y-values straight after finding the correct x-values would be more relevant to completing the midpoint calculations properly.