Maths Olympiad Prep

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Algebra Difficulty 5.2 AIME, harder Prove it Philippines

Problem:
Find the polynomial of least degree, having integral coefficients and leading coefficient equal to 11, with 32\sqrt{3}-\sqrt{2} as a zero.

Solution

Solution:
x410x2+1x^{4}-10x^{2}+1

We let x=32x=\sqrt{3}-\sqrt{2}. We find the monic polynomial equation of least degree in terms of xx. Squaring, we get
x2=(32)2=526orx25=26 x^{2}=(\sqrt{3}-\sqrt{2})^{2}=5-2\sqrt{6} \quad \text{or} \quad x^{2}-5=-2\sqrt{6}
Squaring the last equation, we finally get
(x25)2=(26)2orx410x2+1=0 \left(x^{2}-5\right)^{2}=(-2\sqrt{6})^{2} \quad \text{or} \quad x^{4}-10x^{2}+1=0

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Source: MathNet, licensed CC-BY-4.0. Statement reproduced verbatim; metadata (topic, difficulty) added by this project.