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How many cases do you have after you remove the absolute value?
1
An absolute value measures an expression's distance from a midpoint on a number line.
|2x+5|= 3x+4
This equation means that the distance is 3x+4, either in the positive direction or the negative direction.
lc 2x+5 ≥ 0:2x+5 = (3x+4) & (I) 2x+5 < 0:2x+5 = - (3x+4) & (II)
(II): Distribute - 1
(I), (II): LHS-5=RHS-5
(I): LHS-3x=RHS-3x
(II): LHS+3x=RHS+3x
(I): LHS * (-1)=RHS* (-1)
(II): .LHS /5.=.RHS /5.
When solving an absolute value equation, it is important to check for extraneous solutions. We can check our answers by substituting them back into the original equation. Let's start with 1.
x= 1
Identity Property of Multiplication
Add terms
|7|=7
We will check - 95 in the same way.
x= -9/5
a(- b)=- a * b
a*b/c= a* b/c
a = 5* a/5
Add fractions
|7/5|=7/5
We see that 1 satisfies the equation. However, - 95 is an extraneous solution.