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Algebra Difficulty 3.1 AMC 10/12 Find the answer

Given the equation mx23x+1=0mx^{2}-3x+1=0 has no real solutions for xx, the smallest positive integer value of mm is ____.

A number or a short expression. Spacing and $ signs are ignored.

Solution

To determine the smallest positive integer value of mm for which the equation mx23x+1=0mx^{2}-3x+1=0 has no real solutions, we analyze the discriminant of the quadratic equation. The discriminant (Δ\Delta) of a quadratic equation ax2+bx+c=0ax^{2}+bx+c=0 is given by Δ=b24ac\Delta = b^{2}-4ac. For the equation to have no real solutions, the discriminant must be less than zero (Δ<0\Delta < 0).

Given the equation is mx23x+1=0mx^{2}-3x+1=0, we identify a=ma = m, b=3b = -3, and c=1c = 1. Substituting these values into the formula for the discriminant, we get:
Δ=(3)24(m)(1)=94m \Delta = (-3)^{2}-4(m)(1) = 9-4m

For the equation to have no real solutions, we require:
94m<0 9-4m < 0

Solving this inequality for mm gives:
9<4m    94<m 9 < 4m \implies \frac{9}{4} < m

Since mm must be a positive integer greater than 94\frac{9}{4}, the smallest possible value of mm that satisfies this condition is 33. Therefore, the smallest positive integer value of mm for which the equation has no real solutions is 3\boxed{3}.

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Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.