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One Variable Linear Equation

This document discusses solving one variable linear equations. It defines a one variable linear equation as having only one variable that appears as a constant multiplied by the first power of the variable. To solve these equations, all terms containing the variable are isolated on one side of the equation and all constants on the other side. Several examples of solving different types of one variable linear equations are provided, along with notes about checking solutions. Special cases like equations with no solutions, infinitely many solutions, or variables in denominators are also addressed.

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80 views

One Variable Linear Equation

This document discusses solving one variable linear equations. It defines a one variable linear equation as having only one variable that appears as a constant multiplied by the first power of the variable. To solve these equations, all terms containing the variable are isolated on one side of the equation and all constants on the other side. Several examples of solving different types of one variable linear equations are provided, along with notes about checking solutions. Special cases like equations with no solutions, infinitely many solutions, or variables in denominators are also addressed.

Uploaded by

Edel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Chapter 3: One Variable Linear Equation

What does solving an equation means?


Solving an equation means finding all the values of the variable for which the equation is
true or to prove that there are no such values.
What is a one variable linear equation?
In a one variable linear equation:

 There is only one variable that appears in the equation, though it may appear
multiple times.
 The variable only appears as a constant multiplied by the first power of the
variable.
Method on solving one variable linear equation

Solving equation of the form x +b=c

- To solve this kind of equation, we add the opposite of b on both sides of the
equation because we know that it does not affect the equality and gives us an
equation where x is isolated in one side and the constant on the other.

Solving equation of the form ax=c


- To solve this kind of equation, we multiply both sides of the equation by the
reciprocal of a . That will give us an equation where the variable is isolated on one
side.
Solving equation of the form ax +b=c

- This is the general form of one variable linear equations. To solve this equation,
we usually add the opposite of b on both sides of the equation first, then multiply
the resulting equation by the reciprocal of a , since this will save us from dealing
with fractions.
Equations with no solution
- If, by trying to isolate the variable on one side of the equation, we arrive at an
equation that is never true, like 0=3, then the equation has no solution.

Reason by example: Solve the equation 3 x+ 3=2 x+ 9+ x


After isolating the variable on the left side, we get 0=6. Instead of writing this
equation this way, we write it as 0 x=6 . Now, there is no value of x for which this
equation is true, since 0 multiplied by any number results to 0

Equation with infinitely many solutions


- If we instead arrive at an equation that is always true after trying to isolate the
variable, then the equation has infinitely many solutions.
Reason by example: Solve the equation x +5=2 x +3+2−x
After simplifying this equation and trying to isolate the variable on the left side, we
get 0=0. Again, instead of writing this equation this way, we write it as 0 x=0 .
Now, we see that this equation has infinitely many solutions.
Short summary of the methods
To solve one variable linear equations, we ISOLATE all the term that contains the
variable on one side of the equation and all the constant on the other side.
Word Problems

 Age problems

 Money problems

1 penny =0.01 of a dollar


1 nickel=0.05 of a dollar
1 dime=0.1 of a dollar
1 quarter=0.25 of a dollar
 Adding odd number of consecutive integers with common difference
In this type of problem, it is often easier to define your variable as the middle number.

If we need to add n number of integers, where n is odd, then the middle number is the

( n+12 ) th starting from the first.


Miscellaneous equations

 Solving equations whose variable is raise to some fractional exponent.


- When solving this type of equation, we isolate term with the variable like what we
1 n
( )
would do when solving one variable linear equation then use the fact that a n =a
- However, there is a slight problem when raising both sides of an equation to an
even power. For example

4
We start by isolating √ (2−z) on the left side. That gives us
√4 ( 2−z )=−3
Raising both sides of this equation to 4 and further simplification, we have
z=−78
However, when we substitute this value in our original problem, it gives us a false
equation. The problem here lies in the equation that we raised to 4 . If 2−z is a real
number, then its 4th root must be a nonnegative number. That’s why the equation
has no solution.
In general, whenever we raised both sides of an equation as a step on finding
solutions, then we must check if the solutions that we got satisfies the original
equation.
 Solving equations whose variable appears in the denominator
- In this type of equation, we usually multiply both sides of the equation by the
common denominator, then proceed to solve it like one variable linear equation.
1
For example, solve =6.
3 x −1
When we multiply both sides by 3 x−1, we get 1=18 x−6 , which is a one variable
7
linear equation. Solving this equation gives us x= .
18
- Again, there is a slight problem when we try to remove the variable from the
2x 1 x
denominator. For example, solve − =
x−1 x−1 x−1
We start by multiplying both sides by x−1. That gives us 2 x−1=x , which is a
linear equation. Solving this equation, we get x=1. However, when we try to
substitute this value to our original equation, we divide by zero, which is
prohibited. That’s why we conclude that the equation has no solution.
In general, whenever we remove denominators by multiplication, we must
remember what values of the variable that will make the denominator 0 . These
values are prohibited to be a solution, as seen in the last example.
 A solution that we get that doesn’t satisfy the original equation is called
extraneous solution. To summarize, whenever we raise both sides of an equation
to an even power, or we remove denominators by multiplication, we must always
check if the solutions that we got does indeed satisfies the original equation.
Special problems

 Find the value of a for which this equation has no solution for x .
- In this type of problem, we express x in terms of a , and find the value of a that
does not produce a value for x , or produces a prohibited value of x .
 Repeated subtraction problem

 Problems that require trying some values

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