Factor completely

Psychguy98 · Jan 1, 2011

2a^2 - 32

Can i Factor a?

tkhunny · Jan 1, 2011

No, but if you use the distributive property to pull out a 2, you should see a difference of squares that you can factor.

Psychguy98 · Jan 1, 2011

2(a- ) ( a + ) ? Like that?

Denis · Jan 2, 2011

Psychguy98 said:
2(a- ) ( a + ) ? Like that?

Yes; and that is after pulling the 2 out: 2(a^2 - 16)

Psychguy98 · Jan 2, 2011

Where did the 16 come from?

mmm4444bot · Jan 2, 2011

Psychguy98 said:
Where did the 16 come from?

From factoring.

What is 2 times 16?

tkhunny · Jan 2, 2011

Psychguy98 said:
Where did the 16 come from?

This is why I mentioned the "Distributive Property". Please show us an example of this property. Any example will do.

Psychguy98 · Jan 3, 2011

3(x + 2) = 3x + 6

Denis · Jan 3, 2011

Psychguy98 said:
3(x + 2) = 3x + 6

OK; good example; so if you were asked to factor 3x + 6, then you'd get 3(x + 2), right?
Now can you "see" where the "16" comes from?

tkhunny · Jan 3, 2011

Psychguy98 said:
3(x + 2) = 3x + 6

Sweet! Now, we're getting somewhere.