Q. Factor the expression completely.x4−x2−12Answer:
Recognize Form: Recognize the form of the expression.The given expression x4−x2−12 resembles a quadratic equation in form, where x2 is like the variable 'x' in a quadratic. We can substitute y=x2 to make it look more familiar.
Substitute y: Substitute y for x2.Substitute y=x2 into the expression to get:y2−y−12Now, we have a quadratic equation in terms of y.
Factor Quadratic: Factor the quadratic equation.We need to factor y2−y−12. We are looking for two numbers that multiply to −12 and add up to −1 (the coefficient of y). These numbers are −4 and 3.So, we can write the factored form as:(y−4)(y+3)
Substitute x2: Substitute x2 back in for y.Now we need to replace y with x2 in the factored form:(x2−4)(x2+3)
Recognize Difference of Squares: Recognize the difference of squares. The term (x2−4) is a difference of squares and can be further factored into: (x−2)(x+2)
Write Final Expression: Write the final factored expression.The fully factored expression is:(x−2)(x+2)(x2+3)
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