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| Math Central | Quandaries & Queries |
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How do you simplify: (x-4)^3? |
You don't, it's already as simple as it gets. You can expand it, to get x3 - 12 x2 + 48x - 64. The opposite operation is "factoring". Neither is necessarily considered to be simplification.
"Simplifying" would refer to cancelling, combining common terms, etc. as in
x3 - 2x3 + 5x3 -> 4x3
Good Hunting!
RD
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