To solve the quadratic equation \((x-7)^2 = 11\), we first need to find the solutions by taking the square root of both sides.
Step 1: Rewrite the equation \[ (x - 7)^2 = 11 \]
Step 2: Take the square root of both sides \[ x - 7 = \pm \sqrt{11} \]
Step 3: Solve for \(x\)
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For the positive square root: \[ x - 7 = \sqrt{11} \implies x = 7 + \sqrt{11} \]
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For the negative square root: \[ x - 7 = -\sqrt{11} \implies x = 7 - \sqrt{11} \]
Now, we have our two solutions:
- \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\) (approximately 10.32)
- \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\) (approximately 3.68)
Identifying the smaller and larger solutions:
- The smaller solution is \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\).
- The larger solution is \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\).
Thus:
- The smaller of the two solutions is \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\).
- The larger of the two solutions is \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\).
Answers:
The smaller of the two solutions is \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\), and the larger of the two solutions is \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\).