How do I solve for K in ln(1-4k) = -6k?

CursedAntagonis
Messages
23
Reaction score
0

Homework Statement


Trying to solve for K:

ln(1-4k)=-6k


Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution


I know that need to take the e of both side, to get 1-4k=e^-6k, but I cannot remember any properties of e to allow me to remove the k from the exponent. Any tips is appreciated.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
CursedAntagonis said:

Homework Statement


Trying to solve for K:

ln(1-4k)=-6k


Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution


I know that need to take the e of both side, to get 1-4k=e^-6k, but I cannot remember any properties of e to allow me to remove the k from the exponent. Any tips is appreciated.

Clearly, k=0 is a solution.
to find the another solution you need to use an advanced topic:
http://mathworld.wolfram.com/LambertW-Function.html
 
You have to solve it numerically. You can't solve for k algebraically.

You can visualize the solutions by plotting the functions y=1-4k and y=e^-6k and seeing where they intersect.
 
CursedAntagonis said:
the answer is actually 0.1457 m/s.

m/s?? :smile:
 
There are two things I don't understand about this problem. First, when finding the nth root of a number, there should in theory be n solutions. However, the formula produces n+1 roots. Here is how. The first root is simply ##\left(r\right)^{\left(\frac{1}{n}\right)}##. Then you multiply this first root by n additional expressions given by the formula, as you go through k=0,1,...n-1. So you end up with n+1 roots, which cannot be correct. Let me illustrate what I mean. For this...
Back
Top