Question

Saul simplifies the expression 2x3 + 4x3 to 6x6. Use the drop-down menus to complete the statements below to explain why Saul's solution is correct or incorrect.

Answer 1

saul is incorrect

2x3 + 4x3 is the same as (2 . x^3) + (4 . x^3)

6x6 is the same as 6x . x. x. x. x. x

2x3 + 4x3 simplifies to 6x^3

Explanation:

Answer 2

Saul is incorrect. The proper answer should be 6x^3

Explanation:

Think of "x^3" as "x". So we have 2x+4x = 6x. Similarly, 2x^3+4x^3 = 6x^3. The exponents of the like terms do not change.

As a more real world example, let's say that we replace "x^3" with "dogs". Saying "2x^3" could mean "2 dogs". Same goes for "4x^3" meaning "4 dogs". So "2x^3+4x^3" turns into "2 dogs + 4 dogs", and you can see that leading to 6 dogs total. The last step is to replace "dogs" with "x^3" to end up with 6x^3. The x^3 stays the same the whole time in much the same way that "dogs" do not change either.