2002 AMC 12P Problems/Problem 10

Revision as of 13:22, 10 March 2024 by The 76923th (talk | contribs) (Solution)

Problem

Let $f_n (x) = \text{sin}^n x + \text{cos}^n x.$ For how many $x$ in $[0,\pi]$ is it true that

\[6f_{4}(x)-4f_{6}(x)=2f_{2}(x)?\]

$\text{(A) }2 \qquad \text{(B) }4  \qquad \text{(C) }6 \qquad \text{(D) }8 \qquad \text{(E) more than }8$

Solution

Divide by 2 on both sides to get \[3f_{4}(x)-2f_{6}(x)=f_{2}(x)\] Substituting the definitions of $f_{2}(x)$, $f_{4}(x)$, and $f_{6}(x)$, we may rewrite the expression as \[3(\text{sin}^4 x + \text{cos}^4 x) - 2(\text{sin}^6 x + \text{cos}^6 x) = 1\] We now simplify each term separately using some algebraic manipulation and the Pythagorean identity.

We can rewrite $3(\text{sin}^4 x + \text{cos}^4 x)$ as $3(\text{sin}^2 x + \text{cos}^2 x)^2 - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x$, which is equivalent to $3 - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x$

As for $2(\text{sin}^6 x + \text{cos}^6 x)$, we may factor it as $2(\text{sin}^2 x + \text{cos}^2 x)(\text{sin}^4 x + \text{cos}^4 x - \text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x)$ which can be rewritten as $2(\text{sin}^4 x + \text{cos}^4 x - \text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x)$, and then as $2(\text{sin}^2 x + \text{cos}^2)^2) - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x$, which is equivalent to \[2 - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x\]

Putting everything together, we have \[(3 - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x) - (2 - 6\text{sin}^2 x \text{cos}^2 x) = 1\] or $1 = 1$.

See also

2002 AMC 12P (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 9
Followed by
Problem 11
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All AMC 12 Problems and Solutions

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