Suppose is a polynomial such that and for all real for which both sides are defined. Find .
Solution
Cross-multiplying gives . If has degree and leading coefficient , then the leading coefficients of the two sides are and , so . Now is a root of the right-hand side, so it's a root of the left-hand side, so that for some polynomial or . Similarly, we see that is a root of the left-hand side, giving for some polynomial , or . Now is a root of the left-hand side, so for some polynomial . At this point, , but has degree 3, so must be a constant. Since , we get , and then .
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