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___ ___
√x-3 + 1 = √x+2
You have one of the radical terms already
isolated on the right, so we can go ahead and
square both sides:
___ ___
(√x-3 + 1)² = (√x+2)²
It's easy to square the right side by just removing
the radical and the exponent and just get x+2.
___
(√x-3 + 1)² = x+2
But to square the left side is not so easy because
it has two terms:
___ ___ ___
(√x-3 + 1)² = (√x-3 + 1)(√x-3 + 1)
So we have to use FOIL:
___ ___ ___ ___
√x-3√x-3 + √x-3 + √x-3 + 1
___ ___
(√x-3)² + 2√x-3 + 1
___
x-3 + 2√x-3 + 1
___
x - 2 + 2√x-3
So now our equation:
___
(√x-3 + 1)² = x+2
becomes
___
x - 2 + 2√x-3 = x+2
We isolate the radical term on the left
___
2√x-3 = 4
We can divide both sides by 2
___
√x-3 = 2
We square both sides:
___
(√x-3)² = (2)²
x-3 = 4
x = 7
That may or not be the solution. So we
must always check, because these equations
may have bogus solutions (called "extraneous"),
So we must check in the ORIGINAL equation:
___ ___
√x-3 + 1 = √x+2
___ ___
√7-3 + 1 = √7+2
_ _
√4 + 1 = √9
2 + 1 = 3
3 = 3
It checks, so the solution is x=7.
Edwin