Home » mcq » Engineering maths » Calculus » How many distinct values of x satisfy the equation sin(x) = \[\frac{{\text{x}}}{2}\], where x is in radians? A. 1 B. 2 C. 3 D. 4 or more
How many distinct values of x satisfy the equation sin(x) = \[\frac{{\text{x}}}{2}\], where x is in radians? A. 1 B. 2 C. 3 D. 4 or more
The equation $\sin(x) = \frac{x}{2}$ has two distinct solutions in the interval $[0, 2\pi]$. These solutions are $x = \frac{\pi}{6}$ and $x = \frac{5\pi}{6}$.
To see this, we can use the graph of the sine function. The graph of the sine function is shown below.
[asy]
unitsize(1 cm);
draw((0,-1.2)–(0,1.2));
draw((0,0)–(2*pi,0));
real ticklen=0.1;
real tickspace=0.2;
real axisarrowsize=0.14inch;
real ticklength=0.1cm;
real vectorarrowsize=0.2cm;
The graph intersects the line $y = \frac{x}{2}$ at $x = \frac{\pi}{6}$ and $x = \frac{5\pi}{6}$. Therefore, these are the two distinct solutions to the equation $\sin(x) = \frac{x}{2}$ in the interval $[0, 2\pi]$.