The Cubic Equation Made Simple

arXiv:2010.05299v1 [math.HO] 11 Oct 2020

Abdel Missa∗,† Chrif Youssfi ‡

October 13, 2020

∗
Department of Finance, Jacksonville University. Email: amissa@ju.edu.
†
MarketCipher Partners, Chief Investment Officer. Email: pm@market-cipher.com
‡
MarketCipher Partners, Quantitative Research. Email: cyoussfi@market-cipher.com

1
Contents
1 Introduction 3

2 Canonical function 4

3 Geometric intuition behind proposed method 6

4 MY function definition 7

5 Cubic roots expressed in MY 8

5.1 Solving the canonical equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
5.2 Solving the depressed cubic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

6 Approximation of MY using radicals 11

6.1 Casus irreducibilis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6.2 Fixed point iteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6.3 Examples: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.3.1 Numerical examples for the approximation of MY . . . 18
6.3.2 Numerical examples for solving cubic equations . . . . 18

7 Hypergeometric representation 20

8 Properties of MY 21

9 Acknowledgment 29

2
 Abstract

This article introduces an intuitive function MY that simplifies solving cu-

bic equations without venturing into the complex space. To many, it’s quite
strange that cubic root(s) are expressed using trigonometric functions in the
three-real-roots case versus real-radicals in the one-real-root case. Yet, the
MY function provides a different perspective to this oddity and shows that
the transition between the two worlds is actually smooth.
1 1 2
Although MY ’s behavior resembles power functions such as x 2 , x 3 and x 5 ,
it cannot be expressed in real radicals. That said, we succeded in proving
an accurate closed form algebraic approximation of MY. So yes, casus irre-
ducibilis still holds, but real radicals can get you very close!

1 Introduction
The cubic equation holds a special place in the history of mathematics. In
the early 16th century, the cubic formula was discovered independently by
Niccolò Fontana Tartaglia and Scipione del Ferro. Italy at the time was
famed for intense mathematical duels. In 1535, Tartaglia was challenged by
Antonio Fior, del Ferro’s student, with Tartaglia winning the famous con-
test. Gerolamo Cardano then persuaded Tartaglia to share his method with
him, promising to not reveal it without giving Tartaglia time to publish.
Once Cardano learned about Del Ferro’s work, which predated Tartaglia’s,
he decided that his promise could be legitimately broken and published the
method in his book “Ars Magna” in 1545. This led to a dramatic decade-long
feud between Tartaglia and Cardano [1].

Later on, other methods were developed including a trigonometric solution

for cubic equations with three real roots by François Viète (René Descartes
expanded on Viète’s work) [2]. Joseph Louis Lagrange followed with a new
uniform method to solve lower degree (less than 5) polynomial equations
including the cubic [3]. In 1683, Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus [4]
proposed a new approach using the Tschirnhaus transformation. In addi-
tion, the authors identified other more recent methods and approaches to
solving the cubic equation [5][6][7][8] and developed one of their own [9].

3
In this article, a different approach to solving general cubic equations is
discussed by introducing a new function MY that provides the real roots
uniformly under various cases. MY is then expressed in closed form and hy-
pergeometric form. We then proceed by using an algebraic iteration method
that converges globally towards MY .

While casus irreducibilis [10] for cubic equations states that real-valued roots
of irreducible cubic polynomials cannot be expressed in radicals without in-
troducing complex numbers, we came really close with real radicals. Finally,
the article is concluded by discussing many of the unique properties of MY .

2 Canonical function
Without loss of generality, let’s consider the depressed cubic equation1 :
y 3 + py + q = 0 (1)
Where p and q are real numbers.

Outside the trivial special cases of p=0 or q=0, equation (1) can be trans-
formed to a canonical form:
z3 + z2
=t (2)
2
Two transformations can be used:
q q2
1. Transformation 1: A change of variable z = py
leads to: t = − 2p 3.

2. Transformation 2: When p < 0, a change of variable z = √y −1 leads

−3p 3
to:
1 q
t= − p
27 2 −27p3

The canonical function f is defined in R as:

z3 + z2
f : z 7−→
2
1
For a general cubic equations: ax3 + bx2 + cx + d = 0 where a 6= 0, b, c and d are real
b
numbers, a change of variable y = x + 3a leads to the depressed.

4
Using the sign of the derivative, there are three intervals where f is mono-
tonic:

1. ] − ∞, − 23 ], f is increasing from −∞ to 2
27
. The point M(− 23 , 27
2
) is a
local maximum.

2. [− 23 , 0], f is decreasing from 2

27
to 0. The point O(0, 0) is a local
minimum.

3. [0, +∞[, f is increasing from 0 and +∞.

Together, these properties define the number of roots of the canonical equa-
tion f (z) = x (see Figure 1):
2
1. Scenario 1: x > 27
, there is a unique solution that is above 13 .

2. Scenario 2: x < 0, there is a unique negative solution.

2
3. Scenario 3: 0 ≤ x ≤ 27 there are three real solutions (two of which may
coincide). One root is positive and the other two are negative .

y
Scenario 1
0.1 2
M(− 23 , 27 ) f

Scenario 3

0 z
0

Scenario 2
−0.1
−1.5 −1 −0.5 0 0.5 1 1.5

Figure 1: Canonical function f

5
3 Geometric intuition behind proposed method
To provide the intuition behind our proposed method for solving cubic equa-
tions, notice that the inflection point I − 31 , 27
1


is also a symmetry point.
This can be expressed analytically as:
 
2 2
f − −z = − f (z) for all z∈R
3 27

Therefore, the problem of solving the equation f (z) = x for x ∈ R is reduced

0.1
y
8 · 10−2 f
f|R+
−2
6 · 10 y=x

4 · 10−2 1
I(− 13 , 27 ) 1
27

2 · 10−2 y = 2/27 − x

0 z
z2 z3 - 1 0 z ′ z1
3
−2 · 10−2
−1 −0.8 −0.6 −0.4 −0.2 0 0.2 0.4

Figure 2: Solving of f (z) = 0.05, three real roots

to solving equations f|R+ (z) = a for positive real numbers a. Let’s illustrate
this point geometrically by considering the following example f (z) = x where
x = 0.05 (see Figure 2). This equation has three real solutions z1 , z2 and z3 .

1. Construct the restricted curve f|R+ , as well as the lines y = x and

2
y = 27 − x. The abscissas of the intersections of f|R+ with these two
lines are respectively z1 , the positive root of the equation, and z ′ .

2. Let z2 be the reflection of z ′ with respect to − 31 : z2 = −2/3 − z ′ . Using

the symmetry property, z2 is a root of the equation.

6
 3. Let z3 be the unique negative point such as the distance between z1
and − 13 is the same as the distance between z ′ and z3 . In other words
z3 = −1/3−z ′ −z1. Therefore z1 +z2 +z3 = −1. Using Vieta’s formula,
z3 is the third root.

4 M Y function definition
The restriction, f|R+ , of f to R+ is striclty increasing, continuous with
f|R+ (0) = 0 and lim f|R+ (z) = +∞. Therefore it is bijective from R+
z→+∞
to R+ and admits a reciprocal function:
−1
MY : x 7−→ MY (x) = f|R + (x) x ∈ R+

the graph of MY is symmetrical to the graph of f|R+ with respect to the line
y = x (See Figure 3).

y y

1
1
−MY (x) −MY (x)
−y = x 2
−x 5
1
−f (x) −x
√3
− x
x x
0 1 0 1 2

Figure 3: Left: MY inverse of f Right: MY versus power functions

MY is continuous, strictly increasing and infinitely differentiable. Its behav-

ior resembles power
√ functions (See Figure 3): When x is close to 0,√MY (x)
is equivalent to 2x. For large values of x, MY (x) behaves like 3 2x (see
2
section 8, Properties of MY ). x 5 is an upper bound for MY .

7
Thanks to Cardano and Vieta’s trignometric formulas for cubic roots, MY
can be expressed in closed form. Define:
1
u= x−
27
2
1. For x ∈ [ 27 , +∞[
v s v s
u u
  2  2
1 t
u
3
2
1 u
3
2
1
MY (x) = − + u + u − + u− u −
t
3 27 27

2
2. For x ∈ [0, 27 [
 
1 2 arccos(27u)
MY (x) = − + cos
3 3 3
2
Notice that MY is continuous and smooth at x = 27
despite two totally
different closed form expressions!

5 Cubic roots expressed in M Y

5.1 Solving the canonical equation
Roots of the canonical equation f (z) = x can be expressed in a simple form
using MY :
2
1. For x > 27
, there is a unique real solution z1 = MY (x).

2. For x < 0, there is a unique real solution z1 . Using the symmetry

property:
   
2 2 2 2
f − − z1 = −x it follows that: z1 = − −MY −x
3 27 3 27

2
3. For 0 ≤ x ≤ 27 there are three real solutions. z1 = MY (x) is the
positive solution. The two other negative solutions are obtained, first,
by symmetry:  
2 2
z2 = − − MY −x
3 27

8
 second, by using Vieta’s formula2 z1 + z2 + z3 = −1 :
 
2 1
z3 = MY − x − MY (x) −
27 3

Given the sign of the three roots: z2 , z3 ≤ 0 ≤ z1 . In addition:

 
1 2
z3 − z2 = + 2MY − x − MY (x)
3 27
2
Since MY (x) ≤ MY ( 27 ) = 31 :

z2 ≤ z3 ≤ z1 (4)

5.2 Solving the depressed cubic

Using the results from section 2 and section 5.1, we can express the roots of
the depressed equation:

y 3 + py + q = 0 (1)

Indeed, equation (1) can be transformed to a canonical form using either

Transformation 1 or Transformation 2. Interestingly, each transformation
leads to a different expression of the roots. In particular, when p < 0 both
transformations can be applied which leads to useful equalities. For this
purpose, let’s define: r
3q 3
ξ= −
2p p
We distinguish 4 cases:
√
Case 1: p = 0. There is a unique real solution α = − 3 q.

Case 2: p > 0. There is a unique real solution:

q
α=   
2 2 q2
p − 3 − MY 27 + 2p3

2
Also, for x 6= 0 z3 = 2x/(z1 z2 )

9
Case 3: p < 0 and |ξ| > 1. There is a unique real solution with two
expressions:
r    
p 1 + |ξ| q
α=− − 3MY +1 =  2
3 27 pMY − q 2p3

Case 4: p < 0 and −1 ≤ ξ ≤ 1. There are three real solutions that can be
expressed using Tranformation 2 as:
r    
p 1+ξ
α= − 3MY +1
3 27
r     
p 1−ξ 1+ξ
β=3 − MY − MY
3 27 27
r    
p 1−ξ
γ=− − 3MY +1
3 27
As a result of (4):
γ≤β≤α
When q 6= 0, these roots can be expressed differently using Transformation
1:
q
α′ =  2
q
pMY − 2p 3

q
β′ =     2 
2 q2 q 1
p MY 27 + 2p3
− MY − 2p3 − 3
−q
γ′ =   
2 2 q2
p 3
+ MY 27 + 2p3

Alternatively, β ′ could be derived from any of Vieta’s formulas for equation

(1). For example:
α′ + β ′ + γ ′ = 0
In addition, using the order of the three roots, when q < 0:

α′ = α β′ = γ γ′ = β

and when q > 0:

α′ = γ β′ = α γ′ = β

10
Naturally, the roots coincide with the trigonemetric roots provided by François
Viète:
r
p arccos(ξ) 2kπ
tk = 2 − cos (θk ) where θk = − for k = 0, 1, 2
3 3 3

Since θ0 ∈ [0, π/3], θ1 ∈ [−2π/3, −π/3]: θ2 ∈ [−4π/3, −π]:

t2 ≤ t1 ≤ t0

Therefore
α = t0 β = t1 γ = t2

6 Approximation of M Y using radicals

6.1 Casus irreducibilis
One of the oddities of solving general cubic equations using radicals is the ab-
solute requirement to use complex numbers in the irreducible case. In other
words, despite the three roots being real for irreducible cubic polynomials,
they cannot be expressed as radicals of real numbers [10]. We note of course
the alternate solution provided by Viète, which bypasses the use of complex
numbers by introducing trigonometric functions. This is reflected indirectly
in the provided closed form of the function MY , which is a hybrid of an
2 2
algebraic function for x ≥ 27 and a trigonometric function for x < 27 .

In the following section, we provide an accurate closed form algebraic approx-

imation of MY . In doing so, we offer a new perspective on solving the cubic
equation including in the irreducible case. Please note that the proposed
algorithm below is scalable to certain higher degree polynomial equations.
In a forthcoming paper, the authors will apply the same method to solve the
general Quintic equation and other type of equations in the complex space.

6.2 Fixed point iteration

Assume that z = MY (x). z satisfies the equation:

z 3 + z 2 = 2x (5)

11
This equation can be exploited in two ways. First, by factorizing (5) we
obtain: r
2x
z= (6)
1+z
Second, we can complete the cubic:
 3
1 1 z
z+ = 2x + + (7)
3 27 3
When substituting z in the right hand side of (7) by using (6):
z = G(x, z) (8)
Where the function G is defined by:
s r
3 1 1 2x 1
G (x, y) = 2x + + − (9)
27 3 1 + y 3
Therefore z is a fixed point of G(x, .), inspiring a fixed point iteration.

The following theorem proves the convergence of this method towards MY .

More importantly, it provides right away an accurate closed form algebraic
approximation of MY across R+ .

Convergence theorem:

Define the sequence of functions (Mn (.))n∈N defined by:

2
M0 (x) = G(x, x 5 ) and Mn+1 (x) = G(x, Mn (x))
1. For all positive real numbers x:
|M0 (x) − MY (x)| < C0 where C0 = 1.516.10−3

2. For all positive real numbers x:

C0
|Mn (x) − MY (x)| < where K = 25.05
Kn
3. This sequence converge uniformly to MY over R+ .

12
 In order to demonstrate the convergence theorem, we start with the fol-
lowing lemma:

Lemma:

1. For all positive real numbers x and y:

 
 ∂G  1
 ∂y (x, y) < C1 where C1 ≈
 
21.2398

2. For all positive real numbers x :

 
 ∂G  1

 ∂y (x, MY (x))  < C2 where C2 ≈
 30.5475

Proof of lemma:

G(x, .) is decreasing with respect to y and G(., y) is increasing with respect

to x. Define:
z = MY (x) (10)
z satisfies:
G (x, z) = z (11)
For any x > 0, G(x, .) is derivable and for y ≥ 0 :
√   √ !− 32
∂G 2x 1 9 2x 7
(x, y) = − 2x + (1 + y) 4 + (1 + y) 4 (12)
∂y 18 27 3
 
1. Upper bound for  ∂G (x, .)
 
∂y 
 
 ∂G
 ∂y (x, .) is strictly decreasing and convex. Therefore its maximum C1

is reached at y = 0.
√
Define t = 2x. C1 is also the maximum of:
− 32 3 1
!− 23
t− 2 t− 2

t 2 1 t 1 1
h(t) = t + + = t +
2 +
18 27 3 18 27 3

13
 1
Let v = t− 2 : − 32
1 v3 v

1
h(t) = g(v) = + +
18 v 27 3
C1 , is obtained by setting the derivative of g to 0, reached at v0 :
√
s
−1 + 5
v0 =
2

and
1
C1 ≈
21.2398
 
2. Upper bound for  ∂G (x, MY (x))
 
∂y 

For x > 0 define z = MY (x):

  √   r !− 32
 ∂G  2x 1 1 2x
 ∂y (x, z) = 2x + +
  3
18(1 + z) 2 27 3 1+z

Recall that:
r
2x 1 1 z
z= and (z + )3 = 2x + +
1+z 3 27 3
Therefore  
 ∂G  z
 ∂y (x, z) = (13)
 
2
18(1 + z) z + 31
Or:    −1
 ∂G  1 2 5 7 1
 ∂y (x, z) = 18 z + 3 z + 9 + 9z
 

Setting the derivative to 0 leads to the maximum C2 , reached at z such

that:
5 1
2z + − 2 = 0
3 9z
Notice that:
5 1 (3z + 1)(6z 2 + 3z − 1)
2z + − 2 =
3 9z 9z 2

14
 The only positive solution is:
√
−3 + 33
z=
12
leading to:
1
C2 ≈
30.5475
Proof of Convergence theorem

1. For x > 0, define z = MY (x).

2
Since M0 (x) = G(x, x 5 ) and z = G(x, z):
 2

M0 (x) − MY (x)| = G(x, x 5 ) − z 
 

2
As proven
 below in the Properties of MY section z ≤ x 5 .
 ∂G 2
Since  ∂y (x, .) is decreasing with respect to y over the interval [z, x 5 ]:


 
 2
  ∂G  2 
|M0 (x) − MY (x)| = G(x, x 5 ) − G(x, z) ≤ U(z) =  (x, z) (x 5 − z) (14)
   
∂y

Recall:
 
3 2
 ∂G  z
x = (z + z )/2 and 
 ∂y (x, z) =
2
18(1 + z) z + 13


Therefore   25 
z 3 +z 2
z −z 2
U(z) =
2
18(1 + z) z + 31
Leading to:
  25   25
z 1/2 +z −1/2 z 1/2 +z −1/2
2
−1 2
−1
U(z) =
<
1 2 18(1 + z)
18(1 + z) 1 + 3z

z 1/2 + z −1/2 √
Define: w = ≥1 which implies z = 2w 2−1+2 w 4 − w 2
2

15
 2
w5 − 1
U(z) < √
36(w + w 4 − w 2)
2

2 2
Inequality w 5 − 1 ≤ 52 (w − 1) (w 5 is concave) leads to:
w−1
U(z) < √
90(w 2 + w 4 − w 2)
Define: ξ = w − 1
1 ξ
U(z) < p
90 (ξ + 1)2 + (ξ + 1)4 − (ξ + 1)2

Then
1
U(z) <  √  (15)
(ξ+1)2 (ξ+1)4 −(ξ+1)2
90 ξ
+ ξ

Let’s find lower bounds for the two terms of the denominator:

(a) First: p r
(ξ + 1)4 − (ξ + 1)2 2
= ξ 2 + 4ξ + 5 +
ξ ξ
Setting the derivative to zero leads to:
2 (ξ + 1)(ξ 2 + ξ − 1)
2ξ + 4 − =0 or =0
ξ2 ξ2
√
Therefore the minimum is reached at ξ = −1+2 5
and :
p
(ξ + 1)4 − (ξ + 1)2
≥ 3.33019 (16)
ξ

(b) Second, notice that:

(ξ + 1)2
≥4 (17)
ξ

Therefore
 
1 1 1
U(z) ≤ = ≈ 1.516 10−3
90 4 + 3.33019 659.7171

16
 Going back to (14), for all positive real numbers x:

|M0 (x) − MY (x)| < C0 (18)

Where
1
C0 = ≈ 1.516 10−3
659.7171
2. For n ∈ N and any positive real number x, define z = MY (x) and
y = Mn (x). Since Mn+1 (x) = G(x, y) and z = G(x, z) :
Z z 
 ∂G 
|Mn+1 (x) − z| = 
 ∂y (x, u)  du
 (19)
y
 
Since  ∂G (x, .)  is positive and convex, the integral in (19) is lower than
 
∂y
the area of the trapezoid:
   
1  ∂G   ∂G 
|Mn+1 (x) − z| =≤ |y − z|)   (x, y) + 
  (x, z)
2 ∂y ∂y

Using results from the lemma:

C1 + C2
|Mn+1 (x) − z| ≤ |Mn (x) − z| (20)
2
Or
|Mn (x) − z|
|Mn+1 (x) − z| ≤ (21)
K
Where
2
K= ≈ 25.0572
C1 + C2
It follows from (A.8) and (A.11) that:

C0
|Mn (x) − MY (x)| ≤ (22)
Kn

3. As a natural consequence of (22), the sequence (Mn )n∈N converges uni-

formly to MY.

17
6.3 Examples:
6.3.1 Numerical examples for the approximation of MY
To showcase the efficiency of the process described above, we consider two
examples:

Example 1: x = 0.01, MY (x) closed form approximate value to 10th deci-

mal digit is 0.1328694292.
δn
Iteration Mn (x) δn = |Mn (x)−MY (x)| rn = δn+1
0 0.1321129198 7.6 10−04
1 0.1328921191 2.3 10−05 33.34
2 0.1328687489 6.8 10−07 33.36
3 0.1328694495 2.0 10−08 33.36
4 0.1328694285 6.1 10−10 33.36
5 0.1328694292 1.8 10−11 33.36

Example 2: x = 1000, MY (x) closed form approximate value to 10th

decimal digit is 12.2745406200.
δn
Iteration Mn (x) δn = |Mn (x)−MY (x)| rn = δn+1
0 12.2735762826 9.6 10−04
1 12.2745409317 3.1 10−07 3093.87
2 12.2745406200 6.9 10−11 4552.52

Note that when x < 2/27 (example 1), the closed form expression of MY
2
is trigonometric, and when x ≥ 27 (example 2) , the closed form expression
is in radicals. Yet, the global algebraic (in radicals) approximation provided
works well for both scenarios.

6.3.2 Numerical examples for solving cubic equations

Example 1: x3 + x + 1 = 0.
Here p = 1 and q = 1. The results of section 5.2, case 2 apply. There is a

18
unique real solution α. Using MY closed form:
α ≈ −0.6823278038
αn is the estimate of α using n iterations of the fixed point algorithm of MY .

n αn |αn − α|
0 -0.6823458163 1.8 10−05
1 -0.6823274572 3.5 10−07
2 -0.6823278105 6.7 10−09
3 -0.6823278037 1.3 10−10

Example 2: x3 − 3x + 1 = 0.
q
27 1
Here p = −3 and q = 1 which leads to ξ = q − 4p 3 = 2. The results
of section 5.2, case 4 apply. There are three real roots α, β and γ. Using the
closed form of MY :
α ≈ 1.5320888862 β ≈ 0.3472963553 γ ≈ −1.8793852416
αn , βn and γn are the respective estimates of α, β and γ using n iterations
of the fixed point algorithm of MY .

n αn |αn − α| βn |βn − β| γn |γn − γ|

0 1.5296764368 2.4 10−03 0.3476559549 3.6 10−04 -1.8773323917 2.1 10−03
1 1.5321663348 7.7 10−05 0.3472848043 1.2 10−05 -1.8794511391 6.6 10−05
2 1.5320864010 2.5 10−06 0.3472967260 3.7 10−07 -1.8793831270 2.1 10−06
3 1.5320889660 8.0 10−08 0.3472963434 1.2 10−08 -1.8793853094 6.8 10−08
4 1.5320888837 2.6 10−09 0.3472963557 3.8 10−10 -1.8793852394 2.2 10−09
5 1.5320888863 8.2 10−11 0.3472963553 1.2 10−11 -1.8793852416 7.0 10−11

Obviously, the goal here is not to conduct a deep numerical analysis, nor is it
to provide the most optimal root-finding algorithm (see Newton method, Se-
cant method, Steffensen method, Halley method, Laguerre method, Aberth-
Ehrlich method, Durand-Kerner method, etc.). Instead, our aim is to merely
shed light on an algorithm that approximates with real-radicals MY and
indirectly the roots, especially in casus irreducibilis.

19
7 Hypergeometric representation
The objective of this section is to express MY using hypergeometric func-
tions. Recall that MY (x) is the unique positive solution of the equation:

z 3 + z 2 − 2x = 0

For x > 0 we consider y = 1/z, this implies that:

1 1
y3 − y− =0
6x 4x
We use the method provided by Zucker in [8]. Define:
1 1
p′ = − q′ = − and ∆′ = q ′2 + p′3
2x 2x
The Cardano formula expresses the root as y = u + v with:
 √ − 31  √ − 31
u = −q ′ + ∆′ v = −q ′ − ∆′

Or:  s !− 31 s !− 31 
1 ∆′ ∆′
u + v = (−q ′ )− 3  1 + + 1− 
q ′2 q ′2

Using the identity:

1 1 1
(1 + z)−2a + (1 − z)−2a = 2F (a, a + , , z 2 ) for a=−
2 2 6
where F is the Gaussian hypergeometric function (analytically continued),
we obtain:
1 1 1 ∆′
 
′ − 31
u + v = (−q ) F − , , , ′2
6 3 2 q
z
Using Kummer’s transformation [11]: F (a, b, c, z) = (1−z)−b F (c−a, b, c, z−1 ):
− 31
2q ′ 1 2 1 ∆′
  
u+v = F , , ,
p′ 3 3 2 p′3
Or:  
2 1 1 27x
u + v = 3F , , ,1 − (23)
3 3 2 2

20
Using Kummer’s transformation a second time:
 − 32  
27x 1 2 1 2
u+v =3 F , , ,1 − (24)
2 6 3 2 27x
2 2
If x ≤ 27 , using formula (23), u+v is positive. Likewise when x ≥ 27
, formula
(24) shows that u + v is positive.

Therefore
1
MY(x) = 1 2 1 27x


3F , , ,1
3 3 2
− 2
Notice that  
1 2 1
lim F , , ,z = +∞
z→1 3 3 2
which is coherent with MY (0) = 0.

8 Properties of M Y
In Annex we prove all of the following properties:

Equalities:
2
1. For x ∈ [ 27 , +∞[:
r  q
3 2


2x x − x x − 27
MY (x) = r
1 3 1

q 2


3
+ x − 27 − x x − 27

2. For all positive real numbers x, MY satisfies the identity :

√
 r  
x 1
MY (x) 3MY + + 1 = 6x
54 27

3. For all positive real numbers x 6= 0:

1
MY (x) =  
x
MY (M Y (x))5

21
 2
4. For 0 ≤ x ≤ 27
, the three roots of the equation z 3 + z 2 = 2x are:

z1 = MY (x)
  s !
2 2 1 + MY (x) 1 − 3MY (x)
z2 = − − MY −x =− 1+
3 27 2 1 + MY (x)
  s !
2 1 1 + MY (x) 1 − 3MY (x)
z3 = MY − x −MY (x)− = − 1−
27 3 2 1 + MY (x)
Consequently
  s !
2 1 + MY (x) 1 − 3MY (x) 2
MY −x = 1+ −
27 2 1 + MY (x) 3

5.
MY (x) MY (x)
lim √ =1 and lim √
3
=1
x→0 2x x→+∞ 2x

Consequently for any x ≥ 0

 2
√ 1 xǫ √  x 
x = lim+ MY and 3
x = lim+ ǫMY
ǫ→0 ǫ 2 ǫ→0 2ǫ3

Inequalities:
1. For all positive real numbers x:
s
2x 2
2 ≤ MY (x) ≤ x 5
1+x 5

2. For all positive real numbers x 6= 0:

(a) If a is a real number such that 0 ≤ a ≤ 1:

MY (xa ) ≥ (MY (x))a

(b) If a is a real number such that a ≤ 0 or a ≥ 1:

MY (xa ) ≤ (MY (x))a

22
 3. For x ∈ [0, 1]: √ √
x ≤ MY (x) ≤ 3
x

4. For x ∈ [1, +∞]: √ √

3
x ≤ MY (x) ≤ x

Derivative and primitive:

1. For x > 0 the derivative of M is given by the expression:

2
MY ′ (x) = 2 (x)
3MY + 2MY (x)

2. For x ≥ 0 a primitive of MY is given by the expression:

3 x MY 2 (x)
xMY (x) − +
4 12 24

Proof of the properties of MY

Equalities:

1. The objective is to prove:

v
MY (x) = (25)
1−u
Where
v v
u  s   u s  !
u3 1 2 u
3 2
u=3 t −x + x x− v = 3 t2x x − x x −
27 27 27

v v(1 + u + u2 ) v vu vu2
= = + + (26)
1−u 1 − u3 1 − u3 1 − u3 1 − u3
Then notice:

(a) v
u  s  
1 u
3 1 2
=3 t −x − x x−
u 27 27

23
 (b)
v 2 = −6xu
(c)
v3
= 2x
1 − u3
Therefore, the three terms in (26) can be expressed:
2 v
uv v (−6x) 1 v3 2x 1
3
= 3
= − 3
=− =−
1−u 1−u 6x 1 − u 6x 3
v
u  s 
u2 v

vu u u 3 1 2
=u =− = t x− − x x−
1 − u3 1 − u3 3 27 27
v
u  s  
v 1 vu 1 u3 1 2
= =− = t x− + x x−
1 − u3 u 1 − u3 3u 27 27
Which adds up to:
v
MY (x) =
1−u
In other words:
r  q
3 2


2x x − x x − 27
MY (x) = r
1 3 1

q 2


3
+ x − 27 − x x − 27

2. For any x > 0, define z = MY (x):

z3 + z2
=x
2
A change of variable y = 1/z leads to:
1 1
y3 − y− =0
2x 2x
Let’s introduce a second change of variable:
r r
1 1
y = 3w +
6x 6x

24
 which leads to:
w3 + w2
r
x 1
= +
2 54 27
so: r 
x 1
w = MY +
54 27
1
Since y = 1/z = M Y (x)
:

√
 r  
x 1
MY (x) 3MY + +1 = 6x
54 27

3. Let z = MY (x):
z3 + z2
= 2x
2
By multiplying both sides by z −5 :

z −3 + z −2
= 2xz −5
2
Or
1 x
=M 5
z z
Therefore
1
MY (x) =  
x
MY (M Y (x))5

2
4. For 0 ≤ x ≤ 27 , z1 = MY (x) is root of the equation z 3 + z 2 = 2x.
The other two roots, z2 and z3 , can be found by symmetry and using
Vieta’s formula as provided in section 5.1. Alternatively:

z2 + z3 = −1 − z1 and z2 z3 = 2x/z1 = z1 (1 + z1 )

z2 and z3 are therefore roots of a quadratic equation. The discriminant

is:
1 − 3z1
δ = (1 + z1 )2
1 + z1
Therefore  r 
1 − 3z1
z2 = −(1 + z1 ) 1 +
1 + z1

25
  r 
1 − 3z1
z3 = −(1 + z1 ) 1 −
1 + z1
Notice z2 ≤ z3 . Using the results from section 5.1:
  ! s
2 2 1 − 3MY (x)
1 + MY (x)
z2 = − − MY −x =− 1+
3 27 2 1 + MY (x)
  s !
2 1 1 + MY (x) 1 − 3MY (x)
z3 = MY − x −MY (x)− = − 1−
27 3 2 1 + MY (x)
Consequently
  s !
2 1 + MY (x) 1 − 3MY (x) 2
MY −x = 1+ −
27 2 1 + MY (x) 3

5. MY is the inverse of f . Since lim f (x) = 0 and lim f (x) = +∞:

x→0 x→+∞

lim MY (x) = 0 and lim MY (x) = +∞

x→0 x→+∞

Also MY (x)2 (1 + MY (x)) = 2x which leads to:

s
MY (x) 1
√ =
2x 1 + MY (x)

Therefore:
MY (x)
lim √ =1
x→0 2x

 
3 1
Similarily, since MY (x) 1 + M Y (x)
= 2x:
s
MY (x) 1
√ = 3
1
3
2x 1+ M Y (x)

Therefore
MY (x)
lim √
3
=1
x→∞ 2x

26
 Consequently for any x > 0
 2
√ 1 xǫ √  x 
x = lim+ MY and 3
x = lim+ ǫMY
ǫ→0 ǫ 2 ǫ→0 2ǫ3
This holds also for x = 0.
Inequalities:
1. For all positive real numbers x
 2 1  6  
4
 1 1 −1 2
f x =
5 x +x =x 1+
5 5 x −x
5 5 ≥x
2 2
Since f is strictly increasing
2
MY (x) ≤ x 5

In addition s s
2x 2x
MY (x) = ≥ 2
1 + MY (x) 1 + x5

2. Let’s consider the function h(x) = xa and define z = MY (x):

(a) For 0 ≤ a ≤ 1, h is concave and:

h(z 3 ) + h(z 2 ) z3 + z2
 
≤h = h(x)
2 2

Since h(z 3 ) = (h(z))3 and h(z 2 ) = (h(z))2 :

(h(z))3 + (h(z))2
≤ h(x) and h(z) ≤ MY (h(x))
2
Therefore
MY (xa ) ≥ (MY (x))a
(b) Similarily, for a ≤ 0 or a ≥ 1, h is convex and we have:

MY (xa ) ≤ (MY (x))a

27
 3. For all x ∈ [0, 1]: √
√ x+1
f ( x) = x ≤x
2
√ x−1/3 + 1
f ( 3 x) = x ≥x
2
Since f is strictly increasing:
√ √
x ≤ MY (x) ≤ 3 x

4. For x ∈ [1, +∞] √

√ x+1
f ( x) = x ≥x
2
√ x−1/3 + 1
f ( x) = x
3
≤x
2
Since f is strictly increasing:
√ √
3
x ≤ MY (x) ≤ x

Derivative and primitive:

1. Deriving the identity f (MY (x)) = x leads to MY ′ (x)f ′ (MY (x)) = 1
 
′ 3 2
MY (x) MY (x) + MY (x) = 1
2
Which means:
2
MY ′ (x) =
3MY 2 (x) + 2MY (x)
.
2. Since MY is continuous over R+ , a primitive of MY is given by:
Z x
MY (t)dt
0

Let’s use a change of variable MY (t) = w (or t = f (w) and dt =

f ′ (w)dw):
Z x Z M Y (x)  2 
3w + 2w
MY (t)dt = w dw
0 0 2
Using x = (MY 3 (x) + MY 2 (x))/2, the integral can be simplified to:
Z x
3 x MY 2 (x)
MY (t)dt = xMY (x) − +
0 4 12 24

28
9 Acknowledgment
The authors would like to thank Dr. Nizar Demni, Dr. Hassan Youssfi and
Dr. Daniel Moseley for their support and valuable feedback.

29
References
[1] https://arxiv.org/abs/1308.2181

[2] Nickalls, R. W. D. (July 2006), ” Viète, Descartes and the cu-

bic equation” (PDF), Mathematical Gazette, 90 (518): 203-208,
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[3] J.L. Lagrange. Réflexions sur la résolution algébrique des équations. Nou-
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[4] Tschirnhaus’s 1683 paper ”A method for removing all intermediate terms
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[5] Cubic Equations– Another Solution, Math Forum (Drexel).

[6] R W D Nickalls, A new approach to solving the cubic: Cardan’s solution

revealed, Mathematical Gazette, Vol.77, 1993.

[8] Zucker, I.J. (July 2008). ”The cubic equation — a new look at the irre-
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[9] A. Missa, C. Youssfi. An Alternative Formula For The Cubic Equation.

[10] Wantzel, Pierre (1843), ”Classification des nombres incommensurables

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[11] A. Erdelyi, W. Magnus, F. Oberrettinger and F. G. Tricomi, Higher

transcendental functions (Vol 1), McGraw-Hill (1953) Chapter 2.

30