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Algebra Difficulty 1.4 Junior Find the answer Canada

If $x = \frac{1}{4}$ , which of
the numbers $x$ , $-x$ , $x^2$ , $3x$ , and $\sqrt{x}$ is the greatest?

Pick one

Solution

If $x=\frac14$ , then $-x=-\frac14$ , $x^2=\left(\frac14\right)^2=\frac{1}{16}$ ,
$3x=3\left(\frac14\right)=\frac34$ ,
and $\sqrt{x}=\sqrt{\frac14}=\frac12$ .

The greatest of these numbers is $3x=\frac34$ .

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Source: CEMC, University of Waterloo, licensed CC-BY-NC-4.0. Statement reproduced verbatim; metadata (topic, difficulty) added by this project.