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MATH CHEMISTRY PHYSICS BIOLOGY EDUCATION
Definitions & examples

Polynomial functions are functions of a single independent variable, in which that

variable can appear more than once, raised to any integer power. For example, the
function

is a polynomial. Polynomial functions are sums of terms consisting of a numerical

coefficient multiplied by a unique power of the independent variable.
We generally write these terms in decreasing order of the power of the variable, from left
to right*. Here is a summary of the structure and nomenclature of a polynomial function:
*Note: There is another approach that writes the terms in order of increasing order of the
power of x. This has some appeal because we write power series that way. You'll have to
choose which works for you.
Here are some examples of polynomial functions and the language we use to
describe them:
f(x) = 3x - 2 Linear polynomial (linear function)
f(x) = x2 - 4x + 1 Quadratic polynomial
f(x) = -3x3 + x - 6 Cubic polynomial with no quadratic term
Cubic polynomial (convince yourself that the largest
f(x) = (x - 3)2(2x - 1)
power will be three when expanded)
f(x) = 2x4 - 5x3 + 2x2 - x + 17 Quartic polynomial
Quintic polynomial with only the 5th degree and constant
f(x) = 18x5 - 7
terms.

Anatomy of a polynomial function

Polynomial functions (we usually just say "polynomials") are used to model a wide
variety of real phenomena. In physics and chemistry particularly, special sets of named
polynomial functions like Legendre, Laguerre and Hermite polynomials (thank goodness
for the French!) are the solutions to some very important problems.
It is important that you become adept at sketching the graphs of polynomial functions and
finding their zeros (roots), and that you become familiar with the shapes and other
characteristics of their graphs.
Graphs of polynomial functions

The appearance of the graph of a polynomial is largely determined by the leading term –
it's exponent and its coefficient. Because the leading term has the largest power, its size
outgrows that of all other terms as the value of the independent variable grows. For
example, in f(x) = 8x4 - 4x3 + 3x2 - 2x + 22, as x grows, the term 8x4 dominates all other
terms.
You can check this out yourself by making a quick spreadsheet. Label one column x and
fill it with integer values from 1-10, then calculate the value of each term (4 more
columns) as x grows. Sum them and add the constant term (22) to find the value of the
polynomial. The leading term will grow most rapidly. Here's what I mean:

Graphs of polynomial functions

Each algebraic feature of a polynomial equation has a consequence for the graph of the
function. Here is a table of those algebraic features, such as single and double roots, and
how they are reflected in the graph of f(x).
Term Definition
Single root A solution of f(x) = 0 where the graph crosses the x-axis.
For example, the quadratic function f(x) = (x+2)(x-4) has
 single roots at x = -2 and x = 4.
A solution of f(x) = 0 where the graph just touches the x-
axis and turns around (creating a maximum or minimum -
Double root see below). For example, the cubic function f(x) = (x-
2)2(x+5) has a double root at x = 2 and a single root at x =
-5.
A solution of f(x) = 0 where the graph crosses the x-axis
and the curvature changes sign. See the graph below. For
Triple root
example, the cubic function f(x) = x3 has a triple root at x
= 0.
The name of the point that is a triple root of a polynomial
function. The curvature of the graph changes sign at an
inflection point between concave-upward and concave-
Inflection point
downward. Not all inflection points are located at triple
roots (or even at roots at all), but all triple roots are
inflection points located on the x-axis.
The solution to f(0); the point where a graph crosses the
y-intercept y-axis, usually a convenient (and very easy-to-find) point
to plot when sketching a graph.
When a graph turns around (up to down or down to up), a
Local maximum/minimum maximum or minimum value is created. Local maxima or
minima are not the highest or lowest points on a graph.
The parabola f(x) = x2 has a global minimum at x = 0, but
no global maximum (it increases without bound). The
parabola f(x) = -x2 has a global maximum, but no global
Global maximum/minimum
minimum. The graph below has a global maximum at x =
1. The highest/lowest point on a graph (one may not
exist).
When x is large, either positive or negative, we are
End behavior concerned with whether the function increases or
decreases without bound (it will do one or the other).
Features of a polynomial graph
End behavior: odd degree

Here are the graphs of two cubic polynomials. they differ only in the sign of the leading
coefficient.
The leading term of any polynomial function dominates its behavior. When that term has
an odd power of the independent variable (x), negative values of x will yield (for large
enough |x|) a negative function value, and positive x a positive value.
That is, for large enough | x |,
f(x > 0) > 0
f(x < 0) < 0
The opposite is true when the coefficient of the leading power of x is negative.
Note also in these figures and the ones below that a cubic polynomial (degree = 3) can
have two turning points, points where the slope of the curve turns from positive to
negative, or negative to positive. The quartic polynomial (below) has three turning points.
In general, we say that the graph of an nth degree polynomial has (at most) n-1 turning
points. It may have fewer, however.
End behavior: even degree

When the degree of a polynomial is even, negative and positive values of the independent
variable will yield a positive leading term, unless its coefficient is negative. Negative
numbers raised to an even power multiply to a positive result:
(-2)(-2) = 4
(-2)(-2)(-2) = -8
(-2)(-2)(-2)(-2) = 16, and so on.
The result for the graphs of polynomial functions of even degree is that their ends point in
the same direction for large | x |:
up when the coefficient of the leading term is positive,
down when the coefficient is negative.
Notice that these quartic functions (left) have up to three turning points. A quartic
function need not have all three, however. The graph of f(x) = x4 is U-shaped (not a
parabola!), with only one turning point and one global minimum.
The table below summarizes some of these properties of polynomial graphs.
End behavior of polynomial function graphs.

Finding Roots or Zeros

Very often, we are faced with finding the solution to an equation like this:
4x4 - 3x3 + 6x2 = x + 12
Such an equation can always be rearranged by moving all of the terms to the left side,
leaving zero on the right side:
4x4 - 3x3 + 6x2 - x - 12 = 0
Now the solutions to this equation are just the roots or zeros of the polynomial function
f(x) = 4x4 - 3x3 + 6x2 - x - 12. They are the points at which the graph of f(x) crosses (or
touches) the x-axis. Our task now is to explore how to solve polynomial functions with
degree greater than two. We already know how to solve quadratic functions of all kinds.
First, a little bit of formalism:
The fundamental theorem of algebra
Every non-zero polynomial function of degree n has exactly n complex roots.
The fundamental theorem of algebra tells us that a quadratic function has two roots
(numbers that will make the value of the function zero), that a cubic has three, a quartic
four, and so forth. The number of roots will equal the degree of the polynomial.
But there's a catch: They don't all have to be real numbers. The theorem says they're
complex, and we know that real numbers are complex numbers with a zero imaginary
part.
Further, when a polynomial function does have a complex root with an imaginary part, it
always has a partner, its complex conjugate.
When a polynomial function has a complex root of the form a + bi, a - bi is also a root.
Complex roots with imaginary parts always come in complex-conjugate pairs, a ± bi.
When the imaginary part of a complex root is zero (b = 0), the root is a real root.
Methods of finding roots

1. Greatest common factor (GCF)

When faced with finding roots of a polynomial function, the first thing to check is
whether there is something that can be factored away from all of its terms. Here are some
examples:
Factor out an x, which appears in all terms. We automatically know that
x4 - 3x3 + x2 - 7x = 0 x = 0 is a zero of the equation because when we set x = 0, the whole
x(x3 - 3x2 + x - 7) = 0 thing zeros out. This leaves us with finding the zeros of a simpler
polynomial.
All terms are divisible by three, so get rid of it. Note that the zero on the
3x3 - 27x + 81 = 0 right makes this very convenient ... the 3 just "disappears". We haven't
x3 - 9x + 27 = 0 simplified our polynomial in degree, but it's nice not to carry around
large coefficients.
11x3 - 121x2 + 3x - 2 = Tantalizing when you look at the x's, and the 11 and 121, but there is no
0 GCF here.
Always look for a greatest common factor first when working with any polynomial
function. Finding one can make things a lot easier.
Practice problems — GCF
Find all roots of these polynomial functions by finding the greatest common factor
(GCF).
1. f(x) = 5x4 + 10x3 - 75x2
Solution
2. f(x) = -3x5 - 12x4 - 12x3
Solution
3. f(x) = -4x6 - 16x4
Solution

4. f(x) = 4x4 + 12x3 - 112x2

Solution
5. f(x) = 7x4 - 42x3 + 63x2
Solution

6. f(x) = 2x5 - 26x3 + 72x

Solution
Factoring by grouping

Sometimes factoring by grouping works. The first thing you'll need to check is whether
you've got an even number of terms. If it's odd, move on to another method; grouping
won't work.
The example below shows how grouping works. First find common factors of subsets of
the full polynomial, say two or three terms, and move that out as a common factor.
If what's been left behind is common to all of the groups you started with, it can also be
factored away, leaving a product of binomials that are simpler and easier to solve for
roots.
The trickiest part of this for students to understand is the second factoring. Look at the
example. Between the second and third steps. The binomial (x + 3) is just treated as any
other number or variable. It appears in both added terms of the second step, therefore it
can be factored out.
An example of factoring by grouping
Practice problems — grouping
Find all roots of these polynomial functions by factoring by grouping.
1. f(x) = 2x4 - 6x3 - 4x + 12
Solution

2. f(x) = x4 - 2x3 - 8x + 16
 Solution

3. f(x) = x4 - 9x3 - 4x2 + 36x

Solution
4. f(x) = -3x4 + 3x3 - 2x2 + 2x
Solution

5. f(x) = -8x3 + 56x2 + x - 7

 Solution

6. f(x) = 3x4 - 12x3 - 2x2 + 8x

Solution

7. f(x) = 7x3 + 28x2 + x + 4

Solution
8. f(x) = x6 + 2x5 - 4x2 - 8x
Solution

3. Recognizing the form of a quadratic

You have worked with quadratic equations enough to recognize their basic form:
f(x) = Ax2 + Bx + C.
In this form, there is a constant term, and the first term has twice the degree as the middle
term. Now consider equations of the form

Notice that each of those equations has the same pattern. All have three terms, the highest
power is twice that of the middle term, and each has a constant term (if it didn't, we'd be
able to find a GCF). They have the same general form as a quadratic. Here's an example:
Let's find the roots of the quartic polynomial equation,

To do this, we make a simple substitution: Let u = x2, which means that u2 = x4.

Now this quadratic polynomial is easily factored:

Now we can re-substitute x2 for u like this:

Finally, it's easy to solve for the roots of each binomial, giving us a total of four roots,
which is what we expect.

Doing these by substitution can be helpful, especially when you're just learning this
technique for this special group of polynomials, but you will eventually just be able to
factor them directly, bypassing the substitution.
Substitutions like this, sometimes called u-substitution, are very handy in a number of
algebra and calculus problems. Don't shy away from learning them. Sometimes they're
the only way to solve a problem!
Practice problems — form of a quadratic
Each of these functions has the form of a quadratic function. Find the roots of each.
1. f(x) = x4 - 5x2 - 14
Solution
2. f(x) = x6 - 7x3 + 10
Solution

3. f(x) = x4 - x2 - 110
Solution
4. f(x) = 2x4 + 4x2 - 3
Solution

4. Sum or difference of perfect cubes

While this method of finding roots isn't used all that often, it's a huge time saver when it
can be used. You don't have to memorize these formulae (you can always look them up),
but use them in situations where your polynomial equation is a sum or difference of
cubes, such as

Formulae: Sum or difference of perfect cubes

x3 + y3 = (x + y)(x2 - xy + y2)
x3 - y3 = (x - y)(x2 + xy + y2)
Practice problems — sum & difference of perfect cubes
Use the sum/difference of perfect cubes formulae (box above) to find all of the roots
(zeros) of these functions:
1. f(x) = 27x3 - 8
Solution

2. f(x) = x3 + 64
Solution
3. f(x) = -343x3 + 512
Solution

4. f(x) = 8x3 - 216

Solution
5. The rational root theorem
The rational root theorem is not a way to find the roots of polynomial equations
directly, but if a polynomial function does have any rational roots (roots that can be
represented as a ratio of integers), then we can generate a complete list of all of the
possibilities. Once we've got that, we need to test each one by plugging it into the
function, but there are some shortcuts for doing that, too.
The important thing to keep in mind about the rational root theorem is that any given
polynomial may not even have any rational roots. In those cases, we have to resort to
estimating roots using a computer, using methods you will learn in calculus.
Consider a polynomial equation of the form
Axn + Bxn-1 + . . . + Z = 0,
where A is the coefficient of the leading term and Z is the constant term. Now let p = the
set of all possible integer factors of Z, and their negatives, and let q = the set of all
possible integer factors of A, and their negatives. The rational root theorem says that if
there are any rational roots of the equation (there may not be), then they will have the
form p/q. That is, any rational root of the equation will be one of the p's divided by one
of the q's.
Rational root theorem
Given a polynomial function Axn + Bxn-1 + Cxn-2 + ... + Z, where A, B, C, ..., Z are
constants, let q be all of the positive and negative integer factors of A (the leading
coefficient) and let p = all of the positive and negative integer factors of Z (the constant
term). Then if there are any rational roots of the function, they are of the form ±p/q for
any combination of p's and q's.
For example, given the polynomial function
f(x) = 6x4 - 4x3 + 9x2 + 3,
The set q = ±{1, 2, 3, 6}, the integer factors of 6, and the set p = ±{1, 3}, the integer
factors of 3.
Now we can construct the complete list of all possible rational roots of f(x):

Now it's very important that you understand just what the rational root theorem says. It
gives us a list of all possible rational roots, and we need to plug those each, in turn, into
the function to test whether they are indeed roots. Not all of them can be, and it's entirely
possible that none are.
What remains is to test them. Before we do that, we'll take a brief detour and discuss a
very easy way to do that, synthetic substitution.

Synthetic Substitution
Here's a step-by-step example of how synthetic substitution works.
Sometimes (erroneously) called synthetic division, this procedure is illustrated by this
example. It's a quick and easy method to test whether a value of the independent variable
is a root.
The method starts with writing the coefficients of the polynomial in decreasing order of
the power of x that they multiply, left to right. It's important to include a zero if a
power of x is missing. In the example, if there had been no linear term, we'd put a 0 in
the top line instead of a 1 in the first step.
The number to be substituted for x is written in the square bracket on the left, and the first
coefficient is written below the line (second step). That's the setup. Now it's just a matter
of doing the same thing to the end.
The number in the bracket is multiplied by the first number below the line. The result
becomes the next number in the second row, above the line. The numbers now aligned in
the first and second row are added to become the next number under the line. Repeat until
you're finished. The last number below the line is the result of substituting the value in
the bracket into f(x).
In our example, -1 is a root because it makes the function zero. The binomial (x+1) must
then be a factor of f(x).
The rational root theorem gives us possibilities of rational roots, if any exist. Now
synthetic substitution gives us a quick method to check whether those possibilities are
actually roots. Using the rational root theorem is a trial-and-error procedure, and it's
important to remember that any given polynomial function may not actually have any
rational roots. Its roots might be irrational (repeating decimals) or imaginary.
Example:
Find the four solutions to the equation x4 + 4x3 + 2x2 - 4x - 3 = 0
We begin by identifying the p's and q's. For this function it's pretty easy. The constant
term is 3, so its integer factors are p = 1, 3. The coefficient of the highest degree term
(x4), is one, so its only integer factor is q = 1. Therefore our candidates for rational roots
are:
ra tro o t1 .1

Now we test to see if any of these is a root. For work in math class, here's a hint: always
try the smallest integer candidates first. This is just a matter of practicality; some of these
problems can take a while and I wouldn't want you to spend an inordinate amount of time
on any one, so I'll usually make at least the first root a pretty easy one. Here we try one
and see that it's a root because the value of the function is zero. Notice that the
coefficients of the new polynomial, with the degree dropped from 4 to 3, are right there in
the bottom row of the synthetic substitution grid.

ra tro o t1 .2

Now we don't want to try another positive root because the coefficients of the new cubic
polynomial are all positive. There's no way that a positive value for x will ever make the
function equal zero. We'll try the next-easiest candidate, x = -1:

ra tro o t1 .3

That worked, and now we're left with a quadratic function multiplied by our two factors.
That's good news because we know how to deal with quadratics. This one is easily
factorable:
 ra tro o t1 .4

So that's the whole problem. The complete factorization is:

ra tro o t1 .5

and the roots are

ra tro o t1 .6

Practice problems — rational root theorem

Use the rational root theorem to find all of the roots (zeros) of these functions:
Note: For some of the solutions to these problems, I've skipped some of the trial-and-
error parts just to save space and keep the solutions simple. Sometimes there's a lot of
trial-and-error — and failure — involved in these problems. Keep in mind that all of the
possible rational roots might fail.
1. f(x) = x4 + 3x3 - 3x2 - 7x + 6
Solution

2. f(x) = 2x3 - x2 - 7x + 6
Solution
3. f(x) = 3x4 + 3x3 - 8x2 - 2x + 4
Solution
4. f(x) = 8x5 + 56x4 + 80x3 - x2 - 7x - 10
Solution
What if none of these techniques work?

Sometimes you won't find a GCF, grouping won't work, it's not a sum or difference of
cubes and it doesn't look like a quadratic, . . . and it doesn't have any rational roots. What
to do? Well, you're stuck, and you'll have to resort to numerical methods to find the roots
of your function.
That means graphing the function on a calculator and estimating x-axis crossings or using
a numerical root-finding algorithm. Some calculators and many computer programs can
do this. You'll also learn about Newton's method of finding roots in calculus.
Video examples
Example 1: f(x) = x4 + x3 - 3x2 - x + 2
This function has an odd number of terms, so it's not group-able, and there's no greatest
common factor (GCF), so it's a good candidate for using the rational root theorem with
the set of possible rational roots: {±1, ±2}. If none of those work, f(x) has no rational
roots (this one does, though).
Minutes of your life: 3:02

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