The real numbers satisfy simultaneously the equations
Prove that .
Solution
Suppose that . Then
If , then one of the numbers, say , must be . In this case , and so at least one of the numbers will be equal to , making one of the given equations impossible. Hence and, from (1),
implying
It follows that , which is impossible (for instance, if , then adding the second and third given equations would lead to , a contradiction). Thus .
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