can someone help me understand how to solve this... i have no idea what to do! why are the letters in the problem?

factoring strategy

9x^2 + 4y^2

1 answer

The letters represent unknowns. Here is some strategy:

What would give a product of 4? (2*2 or 4 *1)
What would give a product of 9? (3*3 or 9*1)
How would those values effect any xy term?

If your formula was 9x^2 - 4y^2, it would factor into (3x + 2y)(3x - 2y). Do you have a typo?