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How would I expand 3 brackets, e.g. (x + 3)(x + 4)(x + 2)?

Expanding 3 brackets is very much the same method as expanding 2. In the example you gave, to start you would expand the first two brackets out using the FOIL method (firsts, outsides, insides and leftovers)...
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Answered by Emma W. • Maths tutor
5807 Views

Find the minimum value of the quadratic equation: y = x^2 + 4x - 12

To find the minimum point of a quadratic equation, the quadratic should be written in the form '(x+a) 2 + b', i.e. completing the square, where the coordinates of the minimum point will be (-a,b). To complet...
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Answered by Rebecca B. • Maths tutor
7209 Views

How to do Difficult Surd Algebraic manipulation questions example: Rationalise the denominator of the expression: 1+5^(1/2) / 3+5^(1/2). Give your answer in its simplest form:

The first thing to do, is to assess how far the student has managed to work, and then find the missing pieces within the students skill or knoweldge. I might decide to go through the question with the studen...
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Answered by Alexander V. • Maths tutor
3390 Views

Solve (72x^3 - 18x)/(12x^2 - 6x) = 0 for x.

So first you need to recognise that you are able to take 2x out of both the numerator and denominator of the fraction:(72x3 - 18x)/(12x2 - 6x) = 0 ---> (2x (36x 2 - 9))/ (2x (6x - 3)) = 0 , the 2x's cance...
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Answered by William R. • Maths tutor
3150 Views

What is a major use of completing the square?

Completing the square is a technique that converts a quadratic polynomial of the form:y=ax^2+bx+c into:y=a(x-d)^2+eThis converted form can be used to identify the location of the turning point. The turning p...
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Answered by Lewis M. • Maths tutor
3162 Views