
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
Given three points M (0, -1), A (1, -2), and B (2, 1),
(1) Calculate the area of triangle MAB.
(2) A line l passes through point M. If line l always has a common point with segment AB, determine the range of the slope k and the inclination angle α of line l.

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
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