Question

factor the expression ay-a^5y^5. Simplify as much as possible

Answer 1

dont combine like factors

Answer 2

\[ay-a ^{5}y ^{5}=\]
first you have to bring out common factors..in this casse an "a" & "y"
so you have \[ay(1-a ^{4}y ^{4})\]
Next step is to look at what you have in the bracket and factor that further...
so \[(1-a ^{4}y ^{4}) =\]
\[(1+ a ^{^{2}}y ^{2})(1-a ^{2}y ^{2})\]
For a final answer, you should get
\[= ay(1+a ^{2}y ^{2})(1-a ^{2}y ^{2})\]