Let's use the quadratic formula to solve for x:
Starting with the general quadratic
the general solution using the quadratic equation is:
So lets solve ( notice , , and )
Plug in a=2, b=-5, and c=1
Negate -5 to get 5
Square -5 to get 25 (note: remember when you square -5, you must square the negative as well. This is because .)
Multiply to get
Combine like terms in the radicand (everything under the square root)
Simplify the square root (note: If you need help with simplifying the square root, check out this solver)
Multiply 2 and 2 to get 4
So now the expression breaks down into two parts
or
Now break up the fraction
or
Simplify
or
So the solutions are:
or
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