Question

factor completely please

2a^3-8a^2+10a

Answer 1

Pull out a 2a (the most obvious common factor of the three terms). Think of this as the reverse process of distribution: \[2a(a^2-4a+5)\]Use the discriminant to determine whether or not the right hand side factor can be factored even further: \[B^2-4AC=(-4)^2-4(1)(5)=-4\]Since the discriminant is negative, the polynomial that is the right-hand side factor cannot be factored further within the real number set.