Operations in Expressions
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Basic Math › Operations in Expressions
Factor the following expression:
Explanation
When you factor an expression, you are separating it into its basic parts. When you multiply those parts back together, you should obtain the original expression.
The first step when factoring an expression is to see if all of the terms have something in common. In this case, ,
, and
all have an
which can be taken out:
The next step is to focus on what's in the parentheses. To factor an expression of form , we want to try to find factors
, where
and
. We therefore need to look at the factors of
to see if we can find two that add to
:
We've found our factors! We can therefore factor what's inside the parentheses, , as
. If we remember the
we factored out to begin with, our final completely factored answer is:
Factor
Explanation
To factor an equation in the form , where
and
, you must find factors of
that add up to
.
List the factors of 36 and add them together:
Since ,
is the factor we need. Plug this factor in to get the final answer.
Factor
Explanation
To factor an equation in the form , where
and
, you must find factors of
that add up to
.
List the factors of 36 and add them together:
Since ,
is the factor we need. Plug this factor in to get the final answer.
Solve:
Explanation
Use the order of operations: PEMDAS (Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction).
We want to solve what's in the parentheses first.
Now, do the division and the multiplication.
Therefore our equation becomes:
Finally, subtract.
Factor the following expression:
Explanation
When you factor an expression, you are separating it into its basic parts. When you multiply those parts back together, you should obtain the original expression.
The first step when factoring an expression is to see if all of the terms have something in common. In this case, ,
, and
all have an
which can be taken out:
The next step is to focus on what's in the parentheses. To factor an expression of form , we want to try to find factors
, where
and
. We therefore need to look at the factors of
to see if we can find two that add to
:
We've found our factors! We can therefore factor what's inside the parentheses, , as
. If we remember the
we factored out to begin with, our final completely factored answer is:
Solve:
Explanation
Use the order of operations: PEMDAS (Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction).
We want to solve what's in the parentheses first.
Now, do the division and the multiplication.
Therefore our equation becomes:
Finally, subtract.
Simplify the following expression:
Explanation
The correct answer is due to the law of exponents. When solving this type of problem, it is easiest to focus on like terms (i.e. terms containing x or terms containing y).
First we can start by simplifying the 'x' terms. We start with which is equivalent to
. We then are left with
.
Now we can simplify the 'y' terms as follows: .
Last, the 'z' terms can be simplified as follows: .
This leaves us with the final simplified answer of .
Simplify
Explanation
We start with what is inside the parentheses, so becomes
.
Next, we take care of any exponents, giving us .
Next, we take care of multiplication/division, giving us or
.
Finally, we carry out our addition/subtraction, leaving us with .
Simplify the following expression:
Explanation
The correct answer is due to the law of exponents. When solving this type of problem, it is easiest to focus on like terms (i.e. terms containing x or terms containing y).
First we can start by simplifying the 'x' terms. We start with which is equivalent to
. We then are left with
.
Now we can simplify the 'y' terms as follows: .
Last, the 'z' terms can be simplified as follows: .
This leaves us with the final simplified answer of .
Simplify:
Explanation
When dividing terms with the same bases, remember to subtract the exponents.
Keep in mind that when there is a negative exponent in the numerator, putting that term in the denominator will make the exponent positive.