The function f is defined by f(x) = |x - 4x|. What value of a satisfies f(5) - f(a) = -15?
Clear reason, trap, and next action for this mistake.
First simplify f(x) to |-3x|, so f(5) = 15. The equation becomes 15 - f(a) = -15, which means f(a) = 30. Since |-3a| = 30, a can be 10 or -10 depending on the answer choices. The key mistake was substituting before isolating f(a).
You chose 5, but the credited answer is 10. The missed answer most likely went beyond the evidence or followed an attractive trap instead of the exact support in the text.
Absolute Value Sign Error: this trap looks reasonable because it borrows words or timing from the passage, but it does not prove the required conclusion.
Before choosing, underline the exact proof for 10 and reject any answer that adds a claim the text does not prove.
