Solving the Quadratic Equation: (x-2)^2 - 6(x-2) + 5 = 0
This article will guide you through solving the quadratic equation (x-2)^2 - 6(x-2) + 5 = 0.
Understanding the Equation
The equation is presented in a form that suggests a substitution could simplify it. Notice the repeated term (x-2). This is a clear indicator that we can use substitution to make the equation easier to work with.
Substitution
Let's substitute y = (x-2). This transforms our original equation into:
y^2 - 6y + 5 = 0
This is now a standard quadratic equation in terms of y.
Solving the Quadratic Equation
We can now solve for y using the quadratic formula:
y = (-b ± √(b^2 - 4ac)) / 2a
Where:
- a = 1
- b = -6
- c = 5
Substituting these values into the quadratic formula:
y = (6 ± √((-6)^2 - 4 * 1 * 5)) / (2 * 1)
y = (6 ± √(16)) / 2
y = (6 ± 4) / 2
This gives us two possible solutions for y:
- y1 = 5
- y2 = 1
Back Substitution
Now we need to substitute back x-2 for y to find the solutions for x:
- x - 2 = 5 => x = 7
- x - 2 = 1 => x = 3
Solutions
Therefore, the solutions to the quadratic equation (x-2)^2 - 6(x-2) + 5 = 0 are x = 7 and x = 3.