How would you get rid of the 2 in (2t - 5)(t - 1) = 2?

Question

I'm thinking of subtracting 2 from both sides of the equation, but then -2 would be left on the side with

(2t - 5)(t - 1) and I don't know what to do with that -2.

Answer 1

Hey!

I'm assuming you want to solve for the roots of t in this quadratic equation, right? This would make sense as to why you want the 2 to be zero (getting "rid" of it).

The key is: what you have on the left side are two expressions being multiplied. Since both of those factors aren't written in terms of purely t (they have constants as well), it would be wise to multiply those out (using FOIL, LOIF, algebra charts, etc.) and THEN subtract the 2 on both sides.

This would render your right side equal to zero.

Hope this helps!