Determine the Tangent Slope at a Given Point on the Unit Circle
Let the given point on the unit circle be $(a, b)$, where $a^2 + b^2 = 1$. We need to determine the slope of the tangent line at this point.
The equation of the unit circle is given by:
$$x^2 + y^2 = 1$$
To find the slope of the tangent line at $(a, b)$, we first implicitly differentiate both sides of the equation with respect to $x$:
$$2x + 2y\frac{dy}{dx} = 0$$
Solving for $\frac{dy}{dx}$:
$$\frac{dy}{dx} = -\frac{x}{y}$$
Substituting the point $(a, b)$ into the derivative:
$$\frac{dy}{dx}\bigg|_{(a,b)} = -\frac{a}{b}$$
Therefore, the slope of the tangent line at the point $(a, b)$ is $-\frac{a}{b}$.