Math is hard...

[tattooofhername]

Someone please explain how I resolve this before bits of my brain start popping out of my ears?

3(x+2)2 - (x-2)2

The answer I'm coming up with is 0, because I'm pretty sure the bits in the brackets, even squared, cancel each other out, but since it's a multiple choice quiz and 0 isn't an option... halp?

I don't think the point is to figure out x. Just take all the brackets out and reduce the equation to its simplest form.

Comments

[un-fantasma.livejournal.com]

I can help you out with this later, once I can write it out. I forgot my writing utensils today >.

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

Ok. I have never been able to grasp this area of math, at all. I'm ok when all the numbers are there, but the second you take the numbers out it just all collapses into a heap. And no matter what order I do this one in, I come out with 0.

[un-fantasma.livejournal.com]

I vaguely remember it from high school. I have one class today and should be home in a few hours. I just have to write these things out to understand them.
(Note to self: Carry a spare pencil)

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

I failed math in school. I only barely scraped a pass last year, and this wasn't one of the areas I passed. It's like the second the letters come into it my brain just loses any ability to manipulate the numbers around them.

[un-fantasma.livejournal.com]

I'm taking statistics and am currently failing to my knowledge. I was decent with this type of math, so I try and help when I can. It's when they get those awful Greek characters involved that I can't do math anymore.

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

Don't even get me started on statistics. It's like someone threw the Greek alphabet in a cocktail shaker with a bunch of numbers for flavor, and just went with whatever came out.

I don't know the answer but

[dragonbat2006.livejournal.com]

Let X=your frustration with this math.
Let Y=my frustration with Visual Basic for Applications.

X=Y or close to it.

You have my empathy.

Re: I don't know the answer but

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

We start learning Visual Basic in a while. Have to learn to put a few basic things together to make doing the math easier.

I think I'd just prefer to do the math the long way.

[thexphial.livejournal.com]

Is 2(x2 + 8x + 4) an option?

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

Sadly, no. The available options are all without brackets and multiplications, and all contain numbers I just cannot come up with from here.

[captain-jester.livejournal.com]

3[(x+2)(x+2)] - [(x-2)(x-2)]
so 3(x2 + 4x +4) + -1(X2-4x+4)
so 3x2+12x+12 -x2+4x-4
so 2x2+16x+8 by my math

[captain-jester.livejournal.com]

do we have an = 0 or anything? are we supposed to be solving for x? otherwise you're left with what I gave above

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

That is one of the available answers, and I have no idea how you got there but that's ok.

[polarbee.livejournal.com]

Quadratics! I love the maths.
Have they gone over the FOIL method?
When faced with (x+3)2 you are multiplying (x+3)*(x+3). First, outer, inner, last. Foil. x*x=x2, x*3=3x, x*3=3x, 3*3=9.
x2 +3x+3x+9
x2 +6x+9

Sorry. I kinda miss math somedays.

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

The what now? I failed math in school, and haven't really touched on it since. I can do anything they throw at me just fine, as long as it's all numbers. The second letters get involved I get confused. But I think I'm starting to get it.

[captain-jester.livejournal.com]

you know hos to do a quadratic equation?
The trick is that (x+2)2 is just another way of writing (x+2)(x+2) and - can be replaced with a + by multiplying the equation after it by -1 (Remember you always do the squaring before any outside multiplications

[tattooofhername.livejournal.com]

Well, I do now. I remember failing this in school about... seven years ago, I think, and I've not gone near it since. I think I get how it's done though, which just means practice. Lots and lots of it.

[captain-jester.livejournal.com]

Yup...just remember Foil like person above our replies said. Also, I impressed myself. I haven't had math in 16 years