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Difficulty: 2/102022 NMTC 2022 (QII-25)

If x^2 - 2x + 1 = 0, then x^2 + 1/x^2 is ________.

Guide / Hint

Hint 1: Observe that the equation can be factored as a perfect square: .

Hint 2: Solve for the single unique real root .

Hint 3: Substitute this value of into the expression .

Solution

Step 1 (Solve for x): We are given the quadratic equation:

This is a perfect square trinomial:

Step 2 (Substitute x into Target expression): We want to find the value of . Substituting :

Step 3 (Conclusion): The value of the expression is exactly 2.

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