Question

What is the completely factored form of 2x2 – 32?

A.(2x2 + 16)(x – 16)
B.2(x + 4)(x – 4)
C.2(x + 8)(x – 4)
D.2(x – 8)(x – 4)

Answer 1

Firstly, we can see that 2 goes into both terms of the expression, so we can factor it out like so: 2(x^2 - 16). Now we can spot a difference of two squares expression, as we have an x^2 minus a square number. Remember that the difference of two squares is in the format: (x+a) (x-a), and when expanded, gives you x^2-a^2. Using this information we square root 16 to find out the a value, so a=4. Therefore, your answer is B. 2(x+4)(x-4)

Answer 2

Answer:
2(x+4)(x-4)

Step-by-step explanation:
Before we begin, remember the rule of the difference between squares which is as follows:
a² - b² = (a-b)(a+b)

Now, for the given:
2x² - 32
Take 2 as a common factor:
2(x²-16)
This can be rewritten as:
2(x²-(4)²))
Now, factorize using the difference between squares mentioned above:
2(x+4)(x-4)
This would be the simplest form that could be reached for this expresion

Hope this helps :)