Polynomial

Equations

Rational Root Theorem

Rational Root Theorem
Let 𝑎𝑛 𝑥 𝑛 + 𝑎𝑛−1 𝑥 𝑛−1 + 𝑎𝑛−2 𝑥 𝑛−2 + ⋯ + 𝑎1 𝑥 + 𝑎0 = 0 be a
𝑝
polynomial equation of degree n. If 𝑞 , in lowest terms, is a rational
root of the equation, then p is a factor of 𝑎0 and q is a factor of 𝑎𝑛 .
 Applying the Rational Root Theorem

Study the guided solution to the given polynomial equations. Fill in the
blanks with appropriate words, numbers, or symbols to complete the
solution.

A. Solve 𝑥 3 + 𝑥 2 − 12𝑥 − 12 = 0,
𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑙𝑦𝑛𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑖𝑛 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚.

Solution:

The equation has at most ______

3 real roots. The leading coefficient is
1 and its factors are _________and
_____, 1 -1
_________. The constant term is
-12 ______,
12 ______,
-12 and its factors are _____,
______, 6 -6
______, 4
______, -4
______,
3
______, -3 ______,
______, 2 -2
_______, 1
_______, -1
and _______. The possible roots
12 ±_____,
of the equation are ±_____, 6 ±______,
4 3 ±______
±______, 1
2 and ±______.
To test if 1 is a root of the given equation, use synthetic division.

1 1 1 -12 -12

1 2 -10
1 2 -10 -22

not a root of the equation.

Since the remainder is – 22, therefore 1 is ____________

To test if -1 is a root of the given equation, use synthetic division.

-1 1 1 -12 -12

-1 0 12
1 0 -12 0

a root
Since the remainder is 0, therefore -1 is ____________ of the equation.
 𝑥 3 +𝑥 2 −12𝑥−12
Hence, = 𝑥 2 − 12.
𝑥+1
To find the other roots, we can use the quadratic formula by solving
𝑥 2 − 12 = 0.

−𝑏 ± 𝑏2 − 4𝑎𝑐
𝑥=
2𝑎
−0 ± 02 − 4(1)(−12)
𝑥=
2(1)

−0 ± 48 The other roots are 2 3 𝑎𝑛𝑑 − 2 3.

𝑥=
2
−0 ± 16 ∙ 3
𝑥=
2
±4 3
𝑥=
2
𝑥 = ±2 3
 Therefore, the real roots of the polynomial equation
𝑥 3 + 𝑥 2 − 12𝑥 − 12 = 0 are −1, 2 3 𝑎𝑛𝑑 − 2 3.

The factored form of 𝑥 3 + 𝑥 2 − 12𝑥 − 12 = 0 is 𝑥 + 1 𝑥 − 2 3 𝑥 + 2 3 .

B. Now, try to solve the equation given below on your own.

𝑥 3 − 6𝑥 2 + 11𝑥 − 6 = 0
What to Process
By inspection, determine the number of real roots of each
polynomial equation. Roots of multiplicity n are counted n times.

1. 𝑥 − 4 𝑥 + 3 2 𝑥−1 3 =0 6 real roots

2. 𝑥 2 𝑥 3 − 1 = 0 2 real roots

3. 𝑥 𝑥 + 3 𝑥 − 6 2 = 0 4 real roots

4. 3𝑥 𝑥 3 − 1 2 = 0 3 real roots

5. 𝑥 3 − 8 𝑥 4 + 1 = 0 1 real roots
Find all real roots of the following equations. Next, write each
polynomial on the left side of the equation in factored form. Show
your complete solutions.

1. 𝑥 3 − 10𝑥 2 + 32𝑥 − 32 = 0

2. 3𝑥 3 −19𝑥 2 + 33𝑥 − 9 = 0

3. 𝑥 4 − 5𝑥 2 + 4 = 0
What to reflect on and understand

Testing your knowledge on Polynomial Equations

Write TRUE if the statement is true. Otherwise, modify the underlined

word/s to make it true.

1. The roots of a polynomial equation in x are the values that satisfy

the equation. True

2. Every polynomial equation of degree n has n – 1 real roots.

at most n
3. The equation 2𝑥 3 − 6𝑥 2 + 𝑥 − 1 = 0 has no rational root.
True
4. The possible roots of 3𝑥 5 − 𝑥 4 + 6𝑥 3 − 2𝑥 2 + 8𝑥 − 5 = 0 are
3 𝟏 𝟓
± 5 , ±3 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ± 5. ± , ± , ±𝟏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 ± 𝟓,
𝟑 𝟑
5. The only rational of the equation 𝑥 3 + 6𝑥 2 + 10𝑥 + 3 = 0 𝑖𝑠 3.
-3
Creating Polynomial Equations

For each item below, give a polynomial equation with integer

coefficients that has the following roots.

1) – 1, 3, −6

2) ±2, ±7

3) 0, - 4, -5, ±1

3
4) ±2, 3, 5

1 2
5) ±2, − 3 , 7 , 3
Assignment

Modeling through Polynomial Equation

Set up a polynomial equation that models each problem below. Then

solve the equation, and state the answer to each problem.

1. One dimension of a cube is increased by 1 inch to form a

rectangular block. Suppose that the volume of the new block is
150 cubic inches. Find the length of an edge of the original cube.

2. The diagonal of a rectangle is 8m longer than its shorter side. If the

area of the rectangle is 60 square meter, find its dimensions.