EDGS 646 Index

Level 5 Help for Problem One

Graphically, SQUARING 'bends' a straight line into a parabola, often producing an additional place where the graph crosses the x-axis.

So we must take care when we SQUARE both sides of an equation, as 'spurious' solutions are likely to result.

In the case of the equation

squaring both sides does not remove all the square root (or 'radical') terms.

Instead, we must add to both sides to produce

x = ,

which can be squared - but beware of those spurious solutions!

Back to Problem One?

EDGS 646 Index