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To complete the square, make sure all the variable terms are on one side of the equation. Then, divide both sides of the equation by a so the coefficient of x^2 is 1.
-3.7 and 1.7
We want to solve the quadratic equation by completing the square. To do so, we will start by rewriting the equation so all terms with x are on one side of the equation.
2x^2+4x-5=7 ⇔ 2x^2+4x=12
Now let's divide each side by 2 so the coefficient of x^2 will be 1.
.LHS /2.=.RHS /2.
Write as a sum of fractions
a* b/c=a/c* b
Calculate quotient
In a quadratic expression, b is the linear coefficient. For the equation above, we have that b=2. Let's now calculate ( b2 )^2.
Next, we will add ( b2 )^2=1 to both sides of our equation. Then, we will factor the trinomial on the left-hand side and solve the equation.
LHS+1=RHS+1
a^2+2ab+b^2=(a+b)^2
Add terms
sqrt(LHS)=sqrt(RHS)
Calculate root
LHS-1=RHS-1
Both x=- 1+ sqrt(7) and x=-1-sqrt(7) are solutions of the equation. Now let's use a calculator to approximate each value of x. We see that rounded solutions are x=-3.7 and 1.7.