Justify your steps using the properties of equality and determine the number of solutions to the equation 3/2(4−8x)+5x=1−7x

1 answer

To solve the equation \( \frac{3}{2}(4 - 8x) + 5x = 1 - 7x \), we will proceed step by step and justify each step using the properties of equality.

  1. Distribute \( \frac{3}{2} \): \[ \frac{3}{2} \cdot 4 - \frac{3}{2} \cdot 8x + 5x = 1 - 7x \] This simplifies to: \[ 6 - 12x + 5x = 1 - 7x \] (Justification: Distributive Property)

  2. Combine like terms on the left side: \[ 6 - 7x = 1 - 7x \] (Justification: Combining like terms)

  3. Add \( 7x \) to both sides: \[ 6 - 7x + 7x = 1 - 7x + 7x \] This simplifies to: \[ 6 = 1 \] (Justification: Addition Property of Equality)

  4. Conclude the result: The statement \( 6 = 1 \) is a contradiction. This means that there are no values of \( x \) that can satisfy the original equation.

Conclusion: Thus, the number of solutions to the equation \( \frac{3}{2}(4 - 8x) + 5x = 1 - 7x \) is zero.