Question

Simplify by finding the product of the polynomials below. Then Identify the degree of your answer. When typing your answer use the carrot key ^ (press shift and 6) to indicate an exponent. Type your terms in descending order and do not put any spaces between your characters. (12-4x)^2 This simplifies to: AnswerThe degree of our simplified answer is:

Answer 1

We are asked to simply the following polynomial

`(12-4x)^2`

Let us find the product of the above polynomial and simplify it

`\begin{gathered} (12-4x)^2 \\ (12-4x)\cdot(12-4x) \\ 12\cdot12+12\cdot(-4x)-4x\cdot12-4x\cdot(-4x) \\ 144-48x-48x+16x^2 \\ 144-96x+16x^2 \\ 16x^2-96x+144 \end{gathered}`

Therefore, the simplified polynomial is

`16x^2-96x+144`

The degree of a polynomial is the highest exponent (power)

For the given case, the highest exponent is 2

Therefore, the degree