Factorise x^2 - 1 Please help

Question

asked Jul 9, 2023 141k views

2 Answers

Jpmelos · Answer 1 · 2023-07-09T15:35:02+0000

Answer:

(x+1)(x-1)

Explanation:

Let's factor:
x^2-1

x^2-1

The middle number is 0 and the last number is -1.

Factoring means we want something like

( x + _ )( x + _ )

Which numbers go in the blanks?

We need two numbers that…

Can you think of the two numbers?

Try 1 and -1:

$1 + (-1) = 0\\1*(-1) = -1$

Fill in the blanks in

(x+_)(x+_)

with 1 and -1 to get...