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jmc

algebra senior

Problem

Compute the domain of the function
Solution
The discriminant of the quadratic is , so the quadratic has no real roots and is always positive for real inputs. The function is undefined if , since in that case. Since the quadratic is always positive, we consider the inequality .

To find when , subtract 1 from both sides to obtain and factor as , so or . The parabola is negative between these points, so we must exclude the interval from the domain. So the domain of is .
Final answer
(-\infty,3] \cup [4,\infty)