Ads
related to: free algebra factoring worksheet
Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
In elementary algebra, factoring a polynomial reduces the problem of finding its roots to finding the roots of the factors. Polynomials with coefficients in the integers or in a field possess the unique factorization property , a version of the fundamental theorem of arithmetic with prime numbers replaced by irreducible polynomials .
Fermat's factorization method, named after Pierre de Fermat, is based on the representation of an odd integer as the difference of two squares: =. That difference is algebraically factorable as (+) (); if neither factor equals one, it is a proper factorization of N.
Over a field, the free algebra on n indeterminates can be constructed as the tensor algebra on an n-dimensional vector space. For a more general coefficient ring, the same construction works if we take the free module on n generators. The construction of the free algebra on E is functorial in nature and satisfies an appropriate universal property.
The formula for the difference of two squares can be used for factoring polynomials that contain the square of a first quantity minus the square of a second quantity. For example, the polynomial x 4 − 1 {\displaystyle x^{4}-1} can be factored as follows:
If two or more factors of a polynomial are identical, then the polynomial is a multiple of the square of this factor. The multiple factor is also a factor of the polynomial's derivative (with respect to any of the variables, if several). For univariate polynomials, multiple factors are equivalent to multiple roots (over a suitable extension field).
In algebra, the factor theorem connects polynomial factors with polynomial roots. Specifically, if f ( x ) {\displaystyle f(x)} is a polynomial, then x − a {\displaystyle x-a} is a factor of f ( x ) {\displaystyle f(x)} if and only if f ( a ) = 0 {\displaystyle f(a)=0} (that is, a {\displaystyle a} is a root of the polynomial).
Ads
related to: free algebra factoring worksheet