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Factorise fully x^3-x

User Gabriel Wu
by
3.2k points

1 Answer

2 votes

Answer:


x(x+1)(x-1)

Explanation:

We see that the two terms share an x, so we can pull that out:


x^3-x=x(x^2-1)

Now notice that we have a difference of squares (
x^2-1). Given a difference of squares,
a^2-b^2, this can always be factored into
(a+b)(a-b). We can use this in this case:
x^2-1=(x+1)(x-1).

So, our final factorized form is:
x(x+1)(x-1).

Hope this helps!

User Vanegeek
by
4.8k points