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Quadratic Equations
An example of a Quadratic Equation:
5x2 + 3x + 3 = 0
Quadratic Equations make nice curves, like this one:
Name
The name Quadratic comes from "quad" meaning square, because the
variable gets squared (like x2).
Standard Form
The Standard Form of a Quadratic Equation looks like this:
ax2 + bx + c = 0
a, b and c are known values. a can't be 0.
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b = −3
-0.9 1.7 x
Have a Play With It
Play with the " Quadratic Equation Explorer " so you can see:
ax2 + bx + c = 0
For example:
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We can Factor the Quadratic (find what to multiply to make the Quadratic Equation)
- b +
- b2
- 4 ac
x=
2a
Just plug in the values of a, b and c, and do the calculations.
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Plus/Minus
2
x = −b + √(b − 4ac)
2a
2
x = −b − √(b − 4ac)
2a
-0.9 1.7 x
Discriminant
Do you see b2 − 4ac in the formula above? It is called the Discriminant, because it can
"discriminate" between the possible types of answer:
when it is zero we get just ONE real solution (both answers are the same)
Complex solutions? Let's talk about them after we see how to use the formula.
Just put the values of a, b and c into the Quadratic Formula, and do the calculations.
Coefficients are: a = 5, b = 6, c = 1
−b ± √(b2 − 4ac)
Quadratic Formula: x =
2a
−6 ± √(62 − 4×5×1)
Put in a, b and c: x =
2×5
−6 ± √(36 − 20)
Solve: x =
10
−6 ± √(16)
x=
10
−6 ± 4
x=
10
x = −0.2 or −1
Answer: x = −0.2 or x = −1
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Try singing it a few times and it will get stuck in your head!
−b ± √(b2 − 4ac)
x=
2a
Complex Solutions?
When the Discriminant (the value b2 − 4ac) is negative we get a pair of Complex solutions ...
what does that mean?
√(−16) = 4i
(where i is the imaginary number √−1)
So:
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−2 ± 4i
x=
10
The graph does not cross the x-axis. That is why we ended up with
complex numbers.
In some ways it is easier: we don't need more calculation, just leave it as −0.2 ± 0.4i.
Summary
Quadratic Equation in Standard Form: ax2 + bx + c = 0
−b ± √(b2 − 4ac)
Quadratic Formula: x =
2a
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(Hard Questions: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 )
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