Question
Factor polynomial $$ x^{2}-36x+432 $$
Answer
It seems that $ x^{2}-36x+432 $ cannot be factored out.
Explanation
Step 1: Identify constants $ \color{blue}{ b }$ and $\color{red}{ c }$. ( $ \color{blue}{ b }$ is a number in front of the $ x $ term and $ \color{red}{ c } $ is a constant). In our case:
$$ \color{blue}{ b = -36 } ~ \text{ and } ~ \color{red}{ c = 432 }$$Now we must discover two numbers that sum up to $ \color{blue}{ -36 } $ and multiply to $ \color{red}{ 432 } $.
Step 2: Find out pairs of numbers with a product of $\color{red}{ c = 432 }$.
| PRODUCT = 432 | |
| 1 432 | -1 -432 |
| 2 216 | -2 -216 |
| 3 144 | -3 -144 |
| 4 108 | -4 -108 |
| 6 72 | -6 -72 |
| 8 54 | -8 -54 |
| 9 48 | -9 -48 |
| 12 36 | -12 -36 |
| 16 27 | -16 -27 |
| 18 24 | -18 -24 |
Step 3: Because none of these pairs will give us a sum of $ \color{blue}{ -36 }$, we conclude the polynomial cannot be factored.
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