Solve f(x) = x²: Finding the Missing Value When f(x) = 16

To solve this problem, we'll follow these steps:

• Step 1: Set up the equation from the function definition.
• Step 2: Solve the equation by taking the square root of both sides.
• Step 3: Identify all possible values for $x$.
• Step 4: Compare with the given answer choices.

Now, let's work through each step:

Step 1: We start with the equation given by the function $f(x) = x^2$. We know $f(?) = 16$, so we can write:

$x^2 = 16$

Step 2: To solve for $x$, we take the square root of both sides of the equation:

$x = \pm \sqrt{16}$

Step 3: Solve for $\sqrt{16}$:

The square root of 16 is 4, so:

$x = 4$ or $x = -4$

This gives us the two solutions: $x = 4$ and $x = -4$.

Step 4: Compare these solutions to the answer choices. The correct choice is:

$f(4)$ and $f(-4)$

Therefore, the solution to the problem is $f(4)$ and $f(-4)$.