Proof about identity element of a group

hoopsmax25
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Homework Statement


If G is a group, a is in G, and a*b=b for some b in G (* is a certain operation), prove that a is the identity element of G


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The Attempt at a Solution


I feel like you should assume a is not the identity element and eventually show that a= the identity. but I am not sure how to show that.
 
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Hint: Think about using ##b^{-1}##.
 
I thought about using the inverse of b but I'm not sure how to plug it in?
 
You don't "plug it in". You could try *-ing things with it.
 
Could you do a*b*b-inverse=b*b-inverse? and go from there?
 
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...
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