Factor 3x⁴-17x³-12x²-62 x+20

Question

anonymous · Answer

From my calculations, it's unfactorable. Is this a multiple choice answer?

anonymous · Answer

It's not multiply choice. It is factorable, but into two quadratics. Those cannot be factor. All I'm asking is how do you factor this?

anonymous · Answer

How do you factor 3x⁴-17x³-12x²-62 x+20 into two quadratics?

anonymous · Answer

Link would be helpful too.

anonymous · Answer

I get it. I know I have a video of this somewhere. One second.

mathslover · Answer

Factor theorem will surely work.

mathslover · Answer

find the factors of 20 first... can you tell me @micahwood50 ?

anonymous · Answer

I'm not sure how to do this, can you show me?

mathslover · Answer

what are the factors of 20?

anonymous · Answer

1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 20

mathslover · Answer

is -1 , -2 , -4,-5,-10, -20 also factors of 20 ?

anonymous · Answer

Yeah.

mathslover · Answer

so , now one by one put : $\pm 1,\pm 2, \pm 4, \pm 5, \pm 10, \pm 20$ at the place of x in the given expression

mathslover · Answer

In which you get the answer as 0 ?

mathslover · Answer

3x⁴-17x³-12x²-62 x+20
for example : $3(-1)^4 -17(-1)^3 -12(-1)^2 -62(-1)+20$ 
$-3 +17 -12 + 62 + 20 $ 
$84 \ne 0$ 

Do like this for each : $\pm 1,\pm 2, \pm 4, \pm 5, \pm 10, \pm 20$

mathslover · Answer

Can you do this @micahwood50 ?

anonymous · Answer

Umm, I tried all of them, none of them works.

anonymous · Answer

http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=factor%283x%5E4-17x%5E3-12x%5E2-62x%2B20%29

anonymous · Answer

those are only the rational roots

mathslover · Answer

we want integral roots...

anonymous · Answer

You know what? Save your time and help someone else. I'm googling Factor theorem. Thanks, though.

anonymous · Answer

if the lowest terms with integer coefficients are quadratics, there aren't any.

anonymous · Answer

factors, not terms

anonymous · Answer

that wording was bad, but I think you know what I mean

anonymous · Answer

$\large 3x^4-17x^3-12x^2-62x+20 =(3x^2+4x+10)(x^2-7x+2)$ "Link would be helpful too. " I read a post about factoring into quadratics. Here is a post in which someone tried to explain the method of factoring into quadratics, but I could not understand it. :( http://openstudy.com/users/dpainc#/updates/4fcfdafce4b0c6963adaf2bc

anonymous · Answer

I don't think that that would apply in this situation, unless you could see that x^2 -7x + 2 is a factor.