Question

When you use synthetic division to divide (x3+4x2−2x+1)÷(x+2) , what is the value of the divisor?

Answer 1

In synthetic division, we divide a polynomial by a linear factor of the form \( (x - c) \). In your case, the divisor is \( (x + 2) \), which can be rewritten as \( (x - (-2)) \). Here, \( c = -2 \).

So, the value of the divisor in the context of synthetic division is \( -2 \).