How do you find asymptotes of a graph? - Answers

Asymptotes occur in places where the equation is not valid E.g the equation (1-2x)/x is not valid when x=0 (otherwise you'd be dividing by zero, which is not allowed). Thus there is a asymptote along the x-axis. If you have an equation in a similar form to the one above (i.e a/b) , look at the denominator (b) and work out where it is not valid. This is generally the easiest method of finding asymptotes. Other ways include "trial and error" - subbing in numbers and finding the place where it becomes mathematically impossible to have the equation running along that point. Sometimes it is easier to sub a few numbers into the equation to begin with, and draw a sketch of where you think it goes. This should highlight areas /how many asymptotes to expect; after that you just have to find out exact locations.