Polynomial Equations and Graphs

Lesson 3
 Polynomial
An expression involving a sum of whole number
powers multiplied by coefficients:
anxn + … + a2x2 + a1x + a0

Ex: What are examples of polynomials that we have

used frequently?

Quadratics: ax  bx  c
2

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 2

 Polynomial Terms
Polynomial: An expression involving a sum of whole number powers
multiplied by coefficients:
anxn + … + a2x2 + a1x + a0
Degree: Highest power of a variable.

Factors: The expressions that multiply to get another expression: Since

x2+3x+2=(x+1)(x+2), x+1 and x+2 are factors

Zero or Root: A value for x that makes the polynomial 0.

Coefficient: A number that multiplies a variable.

Leading Coefficient: The coefficient of the term in a polynomial which

contains the highest power of the variable.

Repeated Root: A value for x that makes more than one factor equal zero. For
2
instance -3 is a double rootLesson
of (x+3) (x-2)=(x+3)(x+3)(x-2).
3: Polynomial Equations 3
 Local Minimum/Local Maximum
The lowest or highest point (listed as a
coordinate) in a particular section of a graph.

Local Maximum
(1,5)

(0,3)
Local Minimum
(5,-4)
An Actual
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 4
Minimum
 Characteristics from a Graph
Local Maximum Minimum Degree: 5 or 6
Degree: Even
Factors: (x + 4), (x – 1),
and (x – 5)

Minimum x-intercepts: -4, 1, and 5

Local Orientation: Positive

Minimum “a”: Positive
y-intercept: ~-5
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 5
Repeated Root
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Roughly Sketch the general shape of:
P  x    x  10 x  7  x  12
1 2 3

-10 -7 12

Degree = 3

Opposite end
behavior (odd)
x-intercepts:
Zero-Product Property
x  7  0 x  10  0 x  12  0
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 6
x  7 x  10 x  12
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Roughly Sketch the general shape of:
Q  x    x  6 x  3 x  5 x  8
1 2 3 4

x-intercepts:
Zero-Product Degree = 4
Property
x6  0 x3 0 Identical end
x  6 x  3 behavior
(even)
-6 -3 5 8
x 5  0 x 8  0
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 7
x5 x 8
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Roughly Sketch the general shape of:
R  x  
–  x  4  x  2  x  6  x  10  x  15
1 2 3 4 5

x-intercepts: Degree = 5
Zero-Product
Property Opposite end
x40 x20 behavior (odd)
x  4 x  2

x6  0 Negative
x6 -4 -2 6 10 15 Orientation
x  10  0 x  15  0 (start “up” then
x  10 x  15
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations
go “down”)8
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Roughly Sketch the general shape of:
W  x   x  7  x  7
2 2
1,2 3,4

2 Double
Roots (bounce
off the x-axis)
Degree = 4

Identical end
x-intercepts:
behavior
Zero-Product
(even)
Property
x7 0 x7  0
x  7 x7
-7 Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 7 9
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Roughly Sketch the general shape of:
H  x    x  2   x  3 x  5
2
1,2 3 4
2 Double
Degree = 4
Roots (bounce
off the x-axis) Identical end
behavior
(even)
x-intercepts:
Zero-Product -2 3 5
Property
x  2  0 x 5  0 x 3  0
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 10
x  2 x5 x3
 Degree of a Polynomial
A lot of the characteristics of a quadratic or cubic polynomial also hold for any
polynomial. Yet, here is a summary of the new generalizations about the
degree seen in the previous slides.

The degree (the Highest power of a variable in a polynomial)

determines the following:

• The maximum number of roots.

• End Behavior
– If the degree is even, the end behavior is identical (either
“up” on both ends or “down” on both ends)
– If the degree is odd, the end behavior is opposite (either
start “down” then go “up” OR start “up” then go “down”)
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 11
 Polynomial Equations to Graphs
Without a calculator describe the general shape of:
H  x   3 x  2 x  5x 
4
– 10 2 The value of the constant
term determines the
The sign of the leading y-intercept.
Whether the degree is even or
coefficient determines the
odd determines the end behavior.
orientation. AND
The value of the degree determines the
maximum number of roots.

Orientation: Positive
End Behavior: Identical (“up” on both ends)
x-intercept(s): At most 4 roots. They can not
be determined
y-intercept: (0,-10) since it is not in
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations factored. 12
Equation of a Polynomial to the Graph
2,3 5,6,7
f  x   –  x  5 x  1  x  3 x  6 
1 2 4 3

Triple
Different end Root
behavior (odd) Double
Degree: 7 Root

x-intercepts: -5, -1, 3, 6

(Zero Product Property)

Orientation: Negative
(since the degree is odd, start “up” then go “down”)

y-intercept:
  0  5 0  1  0  3 0  6 
2 3

  51  3 6 
2 3

34020
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 13
 Remainder
and
Factor Theorems
 The Remainder Theorem

If a polynomial f(x) is divided by x-a, the remainder is

the constant f(a), and
Dividend=quotient *divisor +remainder

f ( x )  q ( x ) ( x - a )  f (a )
Where q( x ) is a polynomial with degree one less than the
degree of f(x)
 The Remainder Theorem
Let f ( x )  x 4  6 x 3  8 x 2  5 x  13
find f (4)
Method #1 Direct Substitution
f (4)  (4) 4  6(4)3  8(4) 2  5(4)  13
f (4)  256  384  128  20  13
f (4)  33

therefore when f ( x ) is divided by ( x  4) the remainder = 33

Method # 2 Synthetic Substitution

Remember Lesson 5-3
Use synthetic division for Synthetic Division
4 1 6 8 5 13
 4 8 0 20
1 2 0 5 33 Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 16
The Remainder Theorem

Let f ( x )  3 x 5  5 x 3  57.
Find the remainder when divided by ( x  2)
____________________________________
2 3 0 5 0 0 57
 6 12 14 28 56
3 6 7 14 28 1

Remainder = 1
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 17
 The Factor Theorem

The binomial x - a is a factor of the polynomial f ( x) if and only if f (a)  0

Let f ( x )  x 3  5 x 2  12 x  36
Is the binomial x  3 a factor of the polynomial f ( x ) ?

3 1 5 -12 -36 Since the remainder is 0,

3 24 36 x-3 is a factor of the
1 8 12 0 polynomial.

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 18

 The Factor Theorem

When you divide the polynomial by one of the

binomial factors , the quotient is called a
depressed equation.

The polynomial x 3  5 x 2  12 x  36 can be factored as

(x-3)(x 2  8 x  12).
The polynomial x 2  8 x  12 is the depressed polynomial,
which also may be factorable.

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 19

 The Factor Theorem

Is x - 2 a factor of x  x  2 x  2 ?
4 3

2 1 1 0 2 2 Remainder = 10, therefore

2 2 4 12
(x-2)
1 1 2 6 10
Is NOT a factor

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 20

 The Factor Theorem

Given a polynomial and one of its factors, find the

remaining factors of the polynomial. Some factors may
not be binomials.

1. x  8 x  x  42 ( x  7)
3 2
1.( x  3)( x  2)

2. 2x 15 x  2 x  120 (2 x  5)
3 2
3. 6x 4  13 x3  36 x 2  43 x  30
2.( x  6)( x  4)

( x  2) 3.(3 x 2  8 x  5)(2 x  3)
Using the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra

What is the fundamental theorem of Algebra?

What methods do you use to find the zeros of a
polynomial function?
 Find the number of solutions or zeros
a. How many solutions does the equation
x3 + 5x2 + 4x + 20 = 0 have?

SOLUTION
Because x3 + 5x2 + 4x + 20 = 0 is a
polynomial
equation of degree 3,it has three solutions.
(The solutions are – 5, – 2i, and 2i.)

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 23

 Find the number of solutions or zeros

1. How many solutions does the

equation
x4 + 5x2 – 36 = 0 have?
ANSWER 4
2. How many zeros does the function
f (x) = x3 + 7x2 + 8x – 16 have?
ANSWER 3

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 24

• German mathematician Carl
Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855)
first proved this theorem. It
is the Fundamental Theorem
of Algebra.

If f(x) is a polynomial of degree n where n > 0, then

the equation f(x) = 0 has at least one root in the set of
complex numbers.
If f(x is a polynomial of degree n where n>0, then the
equation f(x) has exactly n solutions provided each
solution repeated twice is counted as 2 solutions,
each solution repeated three times is counted as 3
solutions, and so on. Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 25
 Solve the Polynomial Equation.
x3 + x2 −x − 1 = 0 
1 Notice that −1 is a
1 solution two times.
This is called a
1 1 1 −1 −1 repeated solution,
1 2 1 repeated zero, or a
double root.
1 2 1 0
x2 + 2x + 1
(x + 1)(x + 1)
http://my.hrw.com/math06_07/nsmedia/t
x = −1, x = −1, x = 1 Lesson 3:
ools/Graph_Calculator/graphCalc.html
Polynomial Equations 26
Finding the Number of Solutions or Zeros
x3 + 3x2 + 16x + 48 = 0

(x + 3)(x2 + 16)= 0
x + 3 = 0, x2 + 16 = 0
x = −3, x2 = −16
x = − 3, x = ± 4i

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 27

 Find the zeros of a polynomial equation
Find all zeros of f (x) = x5 – 4x4 + 4x3 + 10x2 – 13x – 14.
SOLUTION
STEP 1 Find the rational zeros of f. Because f is a
polynomial function of degree 5, it has 5
zeros. The possible rational zeros are + 1,
+ 2, + 7, and + 14. Using synthetic division,
you can determine that – 1 is a zero
repeated twice and 2 is also a zero.
STEP 2 Write f (x) in factored form. Dividing f (x)
by its known factors x + 1, x + 1, and x – 2
gives a quotient of x2 – 4x + 7. Therefore:
f (x) = (x + 1)2(x – 2)(x2 – 4x + 7)
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 28
STEP 3 Find the complex zeros of f . Use the quadratic
formula to factor the trinomial into linear factors.

f(x) = (x + 1)2(x – 2) x – (2 + i 3 ) x – (2 – i 3 )

ANSWER

The zeros of f are – 1, – 1, 2, 2 + i 3 , and 2 – i 3.

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 29

Finding the Number of Solutions or Zeros

Zeros: −2,−2,−2, 0
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 30
 Finding the Zeros of a Polynomial Function
Find all the zeros of f(x) = x5 − 2x4 + 8x2 − 13x + 6
Possible rational zeros: ±6, ±3, ±2, ±1
1 1 −2 0 8 −13 6
1 −1 −1 7 −6
1 −1 −1 7 −6 0
−2
−2 6 −10 6 1,1,  2,1  i 2 ,1  i 2

1 −3 5 −3 0
1 1 −2 3
1 −2 3 0
x2 −2x + 3
Use quadratic formula or complete the square
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 31
• What is the fundamental theorem of Algebra?
If f(x) is a polynomial of degree n where n > 0, then the
equation f(x) = 0 has at least one root in the set of
complex numbers.
What methods do you use to find the zeros of a
polynomial function?
Rational zero theorem (2.6) and synthetic division.

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 32

 Descartes’ Rule of Signs

• The number of positive real zeros of a

polynomial function P(x), with real coefficients,
is equal to the number of variations in sign of
the terms of P(x) or is less than this number by a
multiple of 2.
• The number of negative real zeros is equal to
the number of variations in sign of the terms of
P(-x) or is less than this number by a multiple of
2.

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 33

 Example 1

• Find the possible number of positive and

negative real zeros of

f ( x)  3x  5x  2 x  x  10
4 3 2

The problem isn’t asking for the zeros

themselves, but what are the possible
number of them. This can help narrow
down the possibilities when you do go on
to find the zeros.
Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 34
 Example 2
• Find the possible number of positive and negative
real zeros of

f ( x)  2 x  7 x  8 3

Lesson 3: Polynomial Equations 35