A polynomial is an expression that has one or more terms with variables raised to different powers. For example, 3x^2 + 2x - 1 is a polynomial with three terms.
The roots of a polynomial are the values of the variable that make the polynomial equal to zero. In other words, if you plug a root value into the polynomial, the result will be zero.
To find the roots of a polynomial, we can use a process called factoring. Factoring is the process of breaking down a polynomial into smaller factors that we can solve more easily.
For example, let's say we want to find the roots of the polynomial x^2 - 4. We can factor this polynomial as (x + 2)(x - 2), which means that the roots of the polynomial are x = -2 and x = 2. We can check this by plugging these values into the polynomial and seeing that the result is zero.
Roots are important in many areas of math and science, especially in solving equations and understanding the behavior of graphs. When we graph a polynomial, the roots are the x-values where the graph intersects the x-axis.
So, that's the basic idea of polynomial roots. They are the values of the variable that make the polynomial equal to zero, and we can find them by factoring the polynomial.