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BrazilianMonkey
25th April 2006, 09:16 PM
plz, plz help

write x^2-8x+1 in the form (x+a)^2 + b stating the values of a and b
CoolerShaker
25th April 2006, 10:58 PM
Halve the coefficient of x to give -4 then consider (x-4)^2

x^2-8x+1 = (x-4)^2 - 16 + 1
= (x-4)^2 - 15