Month: March 2018

Week 7 – Interpreting the Discriminant

anthonyv2015 on

This week I learned how to interpret the discriminant.

Here is a common question:

This question asked me to determine the values of k for which each equation has no real roots. The first thing you need to do is determine a formula for the discriminant which is the part of the equation in the quadratic formula under the radicand b^{2}-4ac<0. You make the formula to less than zero because you want the discriminant to be negative, you can’t take a root of a negative number so the equation will have no real roots. Then you substitute a b and c into to the and use BEDMAS to solve for k. You figure out if k is less than \frac{-27}{4} there will be no answer to the equation because the discriminant is negative.

Week 6 – Using Square Roots to Solve Quadratic Equations

anthonyv2015 on

This week I learned how to solve quadratic equations using square roots.

Here is a common question:

This question asked me to solve the equation by completing the square. The first thing you need to do in this question is make it a square. You figure out the square by chopping the middle term in half \frac{5}{2} then square it \frac{25}{4}. You add \frac{25}{4} into the equation by making it a zero pair. Then you can solve for x by simplifying the part of the equation that is in brackets to (x+5/2)^{2} and add together the part not in brackets to get \frac{-37}{4}. After you have done this you move \frac{37}{4} to the other side of the equation and square root the whole thing. Then you can move \frac{5}{2} to the other side. Once you have done this you have simplified for x.