Adding and Subtracting Polynomials
- Addition: There are actually two ways to
go about adding polynomials.
- Horizontally: Write a plus sign between the polynomials
and combine like terms.
- Vertically: Arrange the polynomials with like terms in
columns. (This often makes it easier to see what you are
doing.)
- To obtain the opposite of a polynomial,
change the sign of every term in the polynomial. For
example, -(2c 3 +3c - 1) = -2c 3 -
3c + 1. Note that this is the same as if you had
multiplied the polynomial by -1.
- Subtraction: There are (technically) two
ways to go about subtracting as well, but it all comes
down to adding the opposite of the second polynomial.
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