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Algebra Difficulty 3.5 AMC 10/12 Find the answer

If the solution set of the inequality ax2bx+2>0ax^{2}-bx+2 \gt 0 is {x12<x<13}\{x|-\frac{1}{2} \lt x \lt \frac{1}{3}\}, then a+b=a+b=____.

A number or a short expression. Fractions can be typed as 3/2, and spacing doesn't matter.

Solution

Given the solution set of the inequality ax2bx+2>0ax^{2}-bx+2 > 0 is {x12<x<13}\{x|-\frac{1}{2} < x < \frac{1}{3}\}, let's analyze the solution step by step.

Since the solution set is between two values, 12-\frac{1}{2} and 13\frac{1}{3}, we understand that the parabola must open downwards for the values between these two x-values to be greater than zero. This implies a<0a < 0.

Next, we know at the roots of the quadratic equation, the value of the quadratic expression is zero. Given that the roots are related to the coefficients aa and bb through Vieta's formulas, we have:

1. The sum of the roots equals ba\frac{b}{a}.
2. The product of the roots equals 2a\frac{2}{a}.

Given the roots are 12-\frac{1}{2} and 13\frac{1}{3}, we can set up the following equations:

1. 12+13=ba-\frac{1}{2} + \frac{1}{3} = \frac{b}{a}
2. 12×13=2a-\frac{1}{2} \times \frac{1}{3} = \frac{2}{a}

Solving these equations:

1. 12+13=16=ba-\frac{1}{2} + \frac{1}{3} = -\frac{1}{6} = \frac{b}{a}
2. 12×13=16=2a-\frac{1}{2} \times \frac{1}{3} = -\frac{1}{6} = \frac{2}{a}

From equation 2, we can find aa:

16=2aa=12-\frac{1}{6} = \frac{2}{a} \Rightarrow a = -12

Substituting a=12a = -12 into equation 1 to find bb:

16=b12b=2-\frac{1}{6} = \frac{b}{-12} \Rightarrow b = 2

With a=12a = -12 and b=2b = 2, we can find a+ba + b:

a+b=12+2=10a + b = -12 + 2 = -10

Therefore, the final answer is 10\boxed{-10}.

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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.