Final answer:
The ordinate of the point with an abscissa of -6 and at a distance of √74 from (1,3) is either 8 or -2, after applying the distance formula and solving for y.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the ordinate of the point whose abscissa is -6 and which is at a distance of √74 from the point (1,3), we use the distance formula between two points. The distance formula is √((x2 - x1)2 + (y2 - y1)2). In this case, we have one point (x2, y2) as (-6, y) and the other point (x1, y1) as (1,3).
Squaring the distance given, we get 74 = ((-6 - 1)2 + (y - 3)2). This simplifies to 74 = (49 + (y - 3)2). After subtracting 49 from both sides of the equation, we get (y - 3)2 = 25. Taking the square root of both sides gives us y - 3 = ±5. Therefore, the ordinate y can be either 3 + 5 or 3 - 5, which is 8 or -2.