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Exercise 1860Logic, sets and proofs › Quantifiers and negationOlympiadAdded 3 Nov 2026

Proving a quantified statement with $\exists\forall$

#exists forall#nested#olympiad

Statement

Show that ∃a∈R, ∀x∈R, x2+ax+a>0\exists a\in\mathbb{R},\ \forall x\in\mathbb{R},\ x^2+ax+a>0? Determine for which aa this holds.

Hint

The quadratic is positive everywhere iff its discriminant is negative.

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Solution

Condition. x2+ax+a>0x^2+ax+a>0 for all xx iff Δ=a2−4a<0\Delta=a^2-4a<0, i.e. a(a−4)<0a(a-4)<0, i.e. 0<a<40<a<4.

Existential. The set of such aa is nonempty (e.g. a=1a=1), so ∃a, ∀x, x2+ax+a>0\exists a,\ \forall x,\ x^2+ax+a>0 is true.

Conclusion. The statement holds; the qualifying aa are a∈(0,4)a\in(0,4).