Question

PLEASE HELP!!!! What is factoring in mathematics? Please explain! I've been absent for 3 days and they are ready to move onto the test! :'(Example: 9x^2 - 12x + 4 or 81m^2 - 1

Answer 1

You have the following expression:

9x² - 12x + 4

In order to factorize the previous expression, use the quadratic formula, given by:

`x=\frac{-b\pm\sqrt[]{b^(2)-4ac}}{2a}`

where a, b and c are the coefficients of the polynomial.

In this case, you have:

a = 9

b = -12

c = 4

replace the previous values of the parameters into the quadratic formula:

`\begin{gathered} x=\frac{-(-12)\pm\sqrt[]{(-12)^(2)-4(9)(4)}}{2(9)} \\ x=\frac{12\pm\sqrt[]{144-144}}{18} \\ x=(12)/(18)=(2)/(3) \end{gathered}`

Hence, the factor of the given polynomial is:

(x - 2/3)(x-2/3)