Two Zeros of a Maximum

7/10functionsQuadratic EquationsCasework

Problem

Let f(x)=sinπxf(x) = \sin \pi x and g(x)=x2+2axa2+1g(x) = -x^2 + 2ax - a^2 + 1. Writing max{a,b}\max\{a, b\} for the larger of aa and bb, define

M(x)=max{f(x),g(x)}.M(x) = \max\{f(x), g(x)\}.

If M(x)M(x) has exactly two zeros in the interval (0,2)(0, 2), find the range of possible values of the real number aa.

Answer

Solution

Difficulty7/10
Topicsfunctions, Quadratic Equations, Casework

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