1955 AHSME Problems/Problem 18
Problem 18
The discriminant of the equation is zero. Hence, its roots are:
Solution
Since the discriminant is zero, there is one distinct root, or, relevant to this question, two equal roots. The fact that only one solution exists means that the equation can be simplified into . The distinct solution^ to the equation, as we can clearly see, is , which is
^The problem pretends to have two solutions.
See Also
1955 AHSME (Problems • Answer Key • Resources) | ||
Preceded by Problem 17 |
Followed by Problem 19 | |
1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 | ||
All AHSME Problems and Solutions |
The problems on this page are copyrighted by the Mathematical Association of America's American Mathematics Competitions.