19Solving a square root equation
Solve √(x + 7) = x − 5.
The square root equation has one real solution, x = 9. Squaring both sides gives x² − 11x + 18 = 0, factoring to x = 2 or x = 9; checking shows x = 2 fails (√9 = 3 ≠ −3) while x = 9 works (√16 = 4 = 4).