CAIE P3 2005 June — Question 5

Exam BoardCAIE
ModuleP3 (Pure Mathematics 3)
Year2005
SessionJune
TopicFactor & Remainder Theorem
TypeFind constants with divisibility condition

5 The polynomial \(x ^ { 4 } + 5 x + a\) is denoted by \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\). It is given that \(x ^ { 2 } - x + 3\) is a factor of \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\).
  1. Find the value of \(a\) and factorise \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\) completely.
  2. Hence state the number of real roots of the equation \(\mathrm { p } ( x ) = 0\), justifying your answer.