Question

What is the value of p?

Answer 1

ANSWER

$p = - 2$

EXPLANATION

The given equation is

$x = - \frac{1}{8}{y}^{2}$

Multiply both sides by -8

$\implies \: {y}^{2} = - 8x$

We now compare this to the general equation of the parabola:

${y}^{2} = 4px$

This implies that,

$4p = - 8$

Divide both sides by 4.

$p = \frac{ - 8}{4}$

$p = - 2$