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What are the solutions of the equation x4 – 5x2 - 36 = 0? Use factoring to solve.

A. x = +-2 and x = +-3
B. x = +-2i and x = +-3
C. x = +-2 and x = +-3i
D. x = +-2i and x = +-3i

1 Answer

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Answer:

x = -2i and x = 2i

x = 3 and x = - 3

Explanation:

x^4 - 5x^2 - 36 = 0

let u = x^2 and substitute

we have:

u^2 - 5u - 36 = 0

(u - 9)(u + 4) = 0

u = 9 and u = - 4

substitute back for u

x^2 = 9

x = 3 and x = - 3

x^2 = -4 -- i am going to assume you've learned imaginary numbers; otherwise, you cannot take the square root of a negative number.

x = -2i and x = 2i

User Pallavi Sonal
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