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Adding
(or subtracting) polynomials
is really just an exercise
in collecting like terms.
For example, if we want to
add the polynomial
2x2 + 4x – 3
to
the polynomial
6x – 4,
we
would just put them together
and collect like terms:
Notice
that the parentheses in the
first line are only there
to distinguish the two polynomials.
Although
this is basically just a bookkeeping
activity, it can get a little
messy when there are many
terms. One way to help keep
things straight is use the
column format for addition,
keeping like terms lined up
in columns:
This
method is particularly helpful
in the case of subtraction,
because it is too easy to
make a mistake distributing
the minus sign when you write
it all in one row. |
