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Show that the statement “For any real numbers a and b, a2 = b2 implies that a = b” is not true by giving a counter-example. |
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Answer» The given statement can be written in the form of “if-then” as follows. If a and b are real numbers such that a2 = b2, then a = b. Let p: a and b are real numbers such that a2 = b2. q: a = b The given statement has to be proved false. For this purpose, it has to be proved that if p, then ∼q. To show this, two real numbers, a and b, with a2 = b2 are required such that a ≠ b. Let a = 1 and b = –1 a2 = (1)2 = 1 and b2 = (– 1)2 = 1 ∴ a2 = b2 However, a ≠ b Thus, it can be concluded that the given statement is false. |
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