How do you factor the trinomial #m^2 + 8m + 12#?

1 Answer
George C.
Mar 15, 2016

#m^2+8m+12 = (m+2)(m+6)#

Explanation:

Notice that #2+6 = 8# and #2 xx 6 = 12#

So: #m^2+8m+12 = (m+2)(m+6)#

In general, we find:

#(m+a)(m+b) = m^2+(a+b)m+ab#

So if you have a monic quadratic (one that has a leading coefficient of #1#) to factor, typically you are looking for a pair of factors of the constant term with sum or difference equal to the middle coefficient.

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