7.4 Subchapter Notes

Unit: Rationals Module: Inequalities with Rationals
Solving Rational Inequalities
• Solving inequalities:
• Factor where possible.
• Determine the points where each factor equals zero.
• Determine the points that cause the denominator to equal zero and must
be excluded from the domain for x.
• Determine what intervals produce results that satisfy the inequality as
originally stated.
• The extra step involved with rational expressions is to find a common

denominator if necessary.
• Inequalities state their answer sets using interval notation.
• Remember that multiplying or dividing by a negative number reverses the

inequality.
In this example, the first step will be to move the 2 to the left
side so the entire equation is expressed in relation to 0.
Then, do the multiplying necessary to set up a common
denominator. Next, simplify the expression.
Remember: With the variable in the denominator, exclude
from the domain of x any value that sets the denominator
equal to 0. In this case that value is –1.
Now, mark the points where the expression equals 0. In this
case that is the one point at which x equals –2.
Also, mark the points where the expression is undefined; i.e.,
where the denominator equals 0. In this example that is the
one point at which x equals –1.
Now test a random point from each of the regions. Since this
problem states that the expression is less than or equal to 0,
the solution will be the points which produce a negative value
for the expression:
from the left region: -3 produces +½
from the middle region: -1½ produces -1; it works
from the right region: 0 produces +2
Only the middle interval, (-2,-1) works.
Include –2 in the solution; when x equals -2, the expression
equals 0 which is included in the ≤ relationship.
NOTE: -1 would be included also, except that it is excluded
from the domain.
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Copyright  2001, Thinkwell Corp. All Rights Reserved. 1913.doc –rev 03/26/2001
1
Solving Rational Inequalities: Another Example
• Determine the points that cause the denominator to equal zero and must
be excluded from the domain for x.
originally stated.
• Remember to carefully watch that you distribute and use signs correctly.
• Remember that multiplying or dividing by a negative number reverses the

inequality.
The mission, in this problem, is to find all values of x so

that the given expression has a value greater than or equal
to 0.
Factoring the numerator helps find the places where the

expression will equal 0. In this problem, the expression
equals 0 when x equals -3 and when x equals 2.
Also note that the denominator equals 0 when x equals 4.
Therefore, exclude 4 from the domain for x because the
expression is undefined at that point.
Mark on the number line the points where the expression

equals 0 or is undefined; i.e., -3, 2, and 4 for this example.
The inequality wants values that give the expression a
value greater than 0. So, pick from each region and see:
-5 produces -14/9, < 0.
0 produces +3/2, > 0. it works.
+3 produces -6, < 0.
+5 produces +24, > 0, it works.
The solution interval covers all the numbers between and

including –3 and +2 plus all the numbers larger than, but
not including, +4.
Both the number line graph and the union notation clearly
state the solution values.
Copyright  2001, Thinkwell Corp. All Rights Reserved. 1915.doc –rev 03/26/2001
2
Determining Domain
• The domain is the set of all values that can be used for x in an expression.
• The radicand is the value or expression under the radical sign. It must be
positive in order to have a real number root.
originally stated.
In this type of problem, find out what values of x will help

out.
x 2 – 16 must be positive, or there is no real number

square root. That fact leads to setting up an inequality to
solve for x.
Resort to the usual inequality tricks:

1. Factor to get (x + 4) and (x - 4).
2. Set each factor equal to 0.
3. Solve for x .
4. Mark those values on a number line.
5. Choose random points from each interval to determine
which of them satisfy the inequality:
-5 from the left: produces +9, >0; it works.
0 from the middle: produces -16, < 0.
+5 from the right: produces +9, >0; it works.
Mark the left and right intervals as solutions on the number

line and include both –4 and +4 because the expression
equals 0 at those points.
What this means is that values between -4 and +4 have
been excluded from the domain of x because they create a
negative value under the radical.
Copyright  2001, Thinkwell Corp. All Rights Reserved. 1916 –rev 08/03/2001

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Unit: Rationals Module: Inequalities with Rationals

Solving Rational Inequalities

• The extra step involved with rational expressions is to find a common

• Inequalities state their answer sets using interval notation.

• Remember that multiplying or dividing by a negative number reverses the

Solving Rational Inequalities: Another Example

• Remember that multiplying or dividing by a negative number reverses the

The mission, in this problem, is to find all values of x so

Factoring the numerator helps find the places where the

Mark on the number line the points where the expression

The solution interval covers all the numbers between and

In this type of problem, find out what values of x will help

x 2 – 16 must be positive, or there is no real number

Resort to the usual inequality tricks:

Mark the left and right intervals as solutions on the number

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