Question

Tyler thinks he knows one of the linear factors of . After finding that , he suspects that is a factor of P(x). Here is the diagram he made to check if he’s right, but he set it up incorrectly. What went wrong?

Answer 1

Linear factors are the factors of a polynomial

What went wrong is that: Tyler's linear factors are incorrect

The polynomial function is given as:

Rewrite as:

Further rewrite as:

Factorize the above polynomial

Factor out x - 1 from the polynomial

This means that:

The linear factors are x - 1 and x^2 - 8x + 15

From the given diagram, Tyler's linear factors are x - 1 and x^2 - 8x - 15

Hence, Tyler's linear factors are incorrect