Roots

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Roots

by satyavegi » Wed Jun 06, 2012 1:38 am
Q)How many roots does the equation 2^x=x-1 have ?

A)0
B)1
C)2
D)3
E)4
[spoiler]
OA -A[/spoiler]

Can Someone explain the concept here
Source: — Problem Solving |

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by Anurag@Gurome » Wed Jun 06, 2012 3:02 am
satyavegi wrote:Q)How many roots does the equation 2^x=x-1 have?
Probably the easiest and least time consuming method to solve this problem is to apply the concept of graphs. The concept is : the number of solutions or roots of the equation f(x) = g(x) are the number of points at which the graphs of f(x) and g(x) intersects each other. (f(x) and g(x) are functions of x)

In this case, let us assume f(x) = 2^x and g(x) = (x - 1)
Now their graphs will be as shown in the following figure,
Image
As they do not intersect at any point, there is no solution or roots of the equation 2^x = x - 1.

The correct answer is A.
Anurag Mairal, Ph.D., MBA
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