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jmc

algebra senior

Problem

Find all positive values of so that the inequality has real solutions for . Express your answer in interval notation.
Solution
We know that must be negative somewhere, but since it opens upward (the leading coefficient is ) it must also be positive somewhere. This means it must cross the -axis, so it must have real roots. If it has only real root, the quadratic will be tangent to the -axis and will never be negative, so it must have real roots. Thus the discriminant must be positive. So we have , giving . Since must be positive, we have , or .
Final answer
(0,9)