Ina claims that she has proved -2=2. Here proof is shown below.
Step 1) Assume that -2 = 2.
Step 2) Then square both sides: (-2)2 = (2)2
Step 3) This creates a true statement: 4 = 4
Step 4) This means the assumption that -2 = 2 is correct.
- Identify the errors you see in Ina's proof.
In two sentence
3 answers
The error in Ina's proof is that she starts with an incorrect assumption that -2 equals 2. Additionally, squaring both sides of an equation does not necessarily preserve the truth of the statement, so Step 3 is invalid.
Ina claims that she has proved -2=2. Here proof is shown below.
Step 1) Assume that -2 = 2.
Step 2) Then square both sides: (-2)2 = (2)2
Step 3) This creates a true statement: 4 = 4
Step 4) This means the assumption that -2 = 2 is correct.
- Classify the type of invalid reasoning that is present in Ina's proof.
In two sentence
Step 1) Assume that -2 = 2.
Step 2) Then square both sides: (-2)2 = (2)2
Step 3) This creates a true statement: 4 = 4
Step 4) This means the assumption that -2 = 2 is correct.
- Classify the type of invalid reasoning that is present in Ina's proof.
In two sentence
The type of invalid reasoning present in Ina's proof is called affirming the consequent. In this case, affirming the consequent occurs when Ina assumes that because a true statement (4 = 4) follows from her assumption, the assumption itself must be true.