document.write( "<A HREF=/cgi-bin/jump-to-question.mpl?question=43127>Question 43127</A>This question is from textbook <A HREF=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0321279085/algebrahomeworkh>College Algebra with Modeling and Visualization</A><BR>\n" );
document.write( ": <I><SPAN STYLE=\"word-break: break-all;\"> Is the squ rt of x (squared) = x an identity (true for all values of x)?<BR>\n" );
document.write( "Explain </SPAN>\n" );
document.write( "</I><HR><TABLE width=100%><TR><TD><B><A HREF=http://www.algebra.com/>Algebra.Com's</A> Answer #28158 by </B><A HREF=/tutors/aboutme.mpl?userid=fractalier><B>fractalier(6550)</B></A><img src=\"/images/stars/stars-13.gif\" alt=\"\" >&nbsp;<A HREF=/tutors/aboutme.mpl?userid=fractalier><IMG SRC=http://www.algebra.com/images/aboutme-small.gif BORDER=0 alt=\"About Me\" VALIGN=MIDDLE></A>&nbsp;<IMG SRC=http://www.algebra.com/cgi-bin/show-face.mpl?user=fractalier><BR>You can <A HREF=\"/cgi-bin/embed-solution.mpl?show=1&solution=28158\">put this solution on YOUR website!</A><BR><SPAN STYLE=\"word-break: break-all;\"> It depends, actually.  On most standardized tests, for example, the square root of a number is always expected to be positive, called the principal root...that is<BR>\n" );
document.write( "&#8730;25 = 5<BR>\n" );
document.write( "but you know that every number has two square roots, a positive and a negative one...<BR>\n" );
document.write( "Thus under these terms, your proposition is an identity for all x &#8805; 0.<BR>\n" );
document.write( "But in truth, it is an identity, since squaring a number and taking its square root are intrinsically inverse operations... </SPAN>\n" );
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