Q. Solve the following equation for x.x2−x−2=x−2x=□
Simplify by Squaring: Let's first simplify the equation by removing the square root. To do this, we will square both sides of the equation.x=x2−x−2Squaring both sides gives us:x2=(x2−x−2)
Move Terms and Set to Zero: Now, let's simplify the equation by moving all terms to one side to set the equation to zero.x2−(x2−x−2)=0This simplifies to:x2−x2+x+2=0
Cancel x2 Terms: After simplifying, we see that the x2 terms cancel each other out, leaving us with: x+2=0
Solve for x: Now, we solve for x by subtracting 2 from both sides of the equation:x=−2
Check Solution: We should check our solution by substituting x=−2 back into the original equation to ensure it satisfies the equation.Original equation: x=x2−x−2Substitute x=−2:−2=(−2)2−(−2)−2−2=4+2−2−2=4−2=2 or −2=−2We have an issue here because the square root of a number is non-negative, so −2=2 is not possible. The correct interpretation should be −2=−2, which is true. However, we must remember that we squared the equation, which could have introduced an extraneous solution. We need to check the other part of the original equation: x=x2−x−20.Substitute x=−2:x=x2−x−22x=x2−x−23This is not true, so x=−2 is not a solution to the original equation.
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