To solve the quadratic equation \((x - 7)^2 = 11\), we first take the square root of both sides:
\[ x - 7 = \pm \sqrt{11} \]
This leads to two equations:
- \(x - 7 = \sqrt{11}\)
- \(x - 7 = -\sqrt{11}\)
Now we solve for \(x\) in both cases:
- \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\)
- \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\)
Next, we can evaluate the approximate values of these two solutions:
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For \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\): \(\sqrt{11} \approx 3.3166\) So, \(x \approx 7 + 3.3166 \approx 10.3166\) (This is the larger solution.)
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For \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\): \(x \approx 7 - 3.3166 \approx 3.6834\) (This is the smaller solution.)
Thus, the solutions to the quadratic equation are:
- The smaller of the two solutions is \(x \approx 3.6834\).
- The larger of the two solutions is \(x \approx 10.3166\).
Now, to provide the answers in the required format:
The smaller of the two solutions is \(x = 7 - \sqrt{11}\).
The larger of the two solutions is \(x = 7 + \sqrt{11}\).