McGraw Hill Integrated II, 2012
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McGraw Hill Integrated II, 2012 View details
1. Adding and Subtracting Polynomials
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Exercise 10 Page 10

The standard form of a polynomial arranges the terms by degree, in descending order.

Standard Form: 4a^3-5a^2+2a-1
Leading Coefficient: 4

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The standard form of a polynomial arranges the terms by degree in descending numerical order.

2a+4a^3-5a^2-1 ⇕ 4a^3-5a^2+2a-1 We want to find the leading coefficient of the polynomial. When written in standard form, the leading coefficient is the coefficient of the first term. 4a^3-5a^2+2a-1 The leading coefficient of the polynomial is 4.