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Polynomials
Inthissectionwewillstartlookingatpolynomials.Polynomialswillshowupinprettymucheverysection
ofeverychapterintheremainderofthismaterialandsoitisimportantthatyouunderstandthem.

Wewillstartoffwithpolynomialsinonevariable.Polynomialsinonevariablearealgebraicexpressions
thatconsistoftermsintheform wherenisanonnegative(i.e.positiveorzero)integerandaisareal
numberandiscalledthecoefficientoftheterm.Thedegreeofapolynomialinonevariableisthelargest
exponentinthepolynomial.

Notethatwewilloftendroptheinonevariablepartandjustsaypolynomial.

Hereareexamplesofpolynomialsandtheirdegrees.

So,apolynomialdoesnthavetocontainallpowersofxasweseeinthefirstexample.Also,polynomials
canconsistofasingletermasweseeinthethirdandfifthexample.

Weshouldprobablydiscussthefinalexamplealittlemore.Thisreallyisapolynomialevenitmaynotlook
likeone.Rememberthatapolynomialisanyalgebraicexpressionthatconsistsoftermsintheform .
Anotherwaytowritethelastexampleis

Writteninthiswaymakesitclearthattheexponentonthexisazero(thisalsoexplainsthedegree)andso
wecanseethatitreallyisapolynomialinonevariable.

Herearesomeexamplesofthingsthatarentpolynomials.

Thefirstoneisntapolynomialbecauseithasanegativeexponentandallexponentsinapolynomialmust
bepositive.

Toseewhythesecondoneisntapolynomialletsrewriteitalittle.

Byconvertingtheroottoexponentformweseethatthereisarationalrootinthealgebraicexpression.All
theexponentsinthealgebraicexpressionmustbenonnegativeintegersinorderforthealgebraicexpression
tobeapolynomial.Asageneralruleofthumbifanalgebraicexpressionhasaradicalinitthenitisnta
polynomial.

Letsalsorewritethethirdonetoseewhyitisntapolynomial.

So,thisalgebraicexpressionreallyhasanegativeexponentinitandweknowthatisntallowed.Another
ruleofthumbisifthereareanyvariablesinthedenominatorofafractionthenthealgebraicexpressionisnt
apolynomial.

http://tutorial.math.lamar.edu/Classes/Alg/Polynomials.aspx 1/2
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Notethatthisdoesntmeanthatradicalsandfractionsarentallowedinpolynomials.Theyjustcantinvolve
thevariables.Forinstance,thefollowingisapolynomial

Therearelotsofradicalsandfractionsinthisalgebraicexpression,butthedenominatorsofthefractionsare
onlynumbersandtheradicandsofeachradicalareonlyanumbers.Eachxinthealgebraicexpression
appearsinthenumeratorandtheexponentisapositive(orzero)integer.Thereforethisisapolynomial.

Next,letstakeaquicklookatpolynomialsintwovariables.Polynomialsintwovariablesarealgebraic
expressionsconsistingoftermsintheform .Thedegreeofeachterminapolynomialintwovariables
isthesumoftheexponentsineachtermandthedegreeofthepolynomialisthelargestsuchsum.

Herearesomeexamplesofpolynomialsintwovariablesandtheirdegrees.

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