What is the concept for solving equations with integer parts?

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Homework Statement



2*[x]-3*[3x]+7=0

Homework Equations



solve for x when [x] is the integer part of the number.

The Attempt at a Solution



To solve it i removed the brackets and got x=1 and then i found the integer part of 1 is 1.

Is it correct? If not is there a concept to solving it?
 
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what do u mean by what if x=1.07

The integer part of 1.07 is 1 right? so that can be a solution as well and i also thought about have it as x= [1,2[
 
Don't forget that [itex][3x]\ne 3[x][/itex]. For example, if 1.5, then [x]= 1 but 3x= 4.5 so [3x]= 4, not 3. With x= 1.5, 2[x]- 3[3x]+ 7= 2(1)- 3(4)+ 7= 2- 12+ 7= -3, not 0.
 
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yea thanks for the tip but I'm getting no where with this one at all.
 
What are the largest and smallest values of x that will be solutions to the equation? The solution interval is not [1,2], like you said earlier, since, as HallsofIvy showed, 1.5 is not a solution.
 
You need to use general intervals. Remember that:
[tex] [3 x] = N \in \mathbb{Z}, \; N \le 3 x < N + 1 \Leftrightarrow \frac{N}{3} \le x < \frac{N + 1}{3}[/tex]

So, consider the following 3 families of intervals:
First family:

[tex] N = 3 k, k \le x < k + \frac{1}{3}, \; \mathbb{Z}[/tex]
Then you have:
[tex] [x] = k, [3 x] = N = 3 k[/tex]
and your equation reads:
[tex] 2 k - 3 (3 k) + 7 = 0[/tex]

Second family:
[tex] N = 3 k + 1, k + \frac{1}{3} \le x < k + \frac{2}{3}[/tex]
Then, you have:
[tex] [x] = k, [3 x] = N = 3 k + 1[/tex]
and your equation reads:
[tex] 2 k - 3 ( 3 k + 1) + 7 = 0[/tex]

Third family:
[tex] N = 3 k + 2, k + \frac{2}{3} \le x < k + 1[/tex]
Then you have:
[tex] [x] = k, [3 x] = N = 3 k + 2[/tex]
and your equation reads:
[tex] 2 k - 3 (3 k + 2) + 7 = 0[/tex]

Thus, you get three cases that exhaust the whole set of real numbers and for each case you get an equation. The solution to those equations has to be an integer!
 
It seems that way, but I wanted the op to check that themselves.