A region of space has an electric potential that varies with position in the \(xy\)-plane. A contour map of the equipotential lines is shown in Figure 1. The potential \(V\) as a function of position is given by the expression \( V(x, y) = V_0 - \alpha x^2 + \beta y \), where \(V_0 = 12 \text{ V}\), \(\alpha = 1.0 \text{ V/m}^2\), and \(\beta = 2.0 \text{ V/m}\). The coordinates \(x\) and \(y\) are in meters.