Question if-a-i
If a is a solution of the equation above and 
, what is the value of a ?
If a is a solution of the equation above and , what is the value of
Hard-difficulty · SAT Math · Nonlinear Equations in One Variable — Quadratic solving (factoring, quadratic formula, completing square). Read the question above, select your answer, and check the full explanation below to understand exactly why the correct choice works.
Answer explanation
The correct answer is 3. The solution to the given equation can be found by factoring the quadratic expression. The factors can be determined by finding two numbers with a sum of 1 and a product of 
. The two numbers that meet these constraints are 4 and 
. Therefore, the given equation can be rewritten as 
. It follows that the solutions to the equation are 
or 
. Since it is given that 
, a must equal 3.
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