OCR MEI AS Paper 1 2019 June — Question 7

Exam BoardOCR MEI
ModuleAS Paper 1 (AS Paper 1)
Year2019
SessionJune
TopicFactor & Remainder Theorem
TypeKnown polynomial, verify then factorise

7 In this question you must show detailed reasoning.
  1. Nigel is asked to determine whether \(( x + 7 )\) is a factor of \(x ^ { 3 } - 37 x + 84\). He substitutes \(x = 7\) and calculates \(7 ^ { 3 } - 37 \times 7 + 84\). This comes to 168 , so Nigel concludes that ( \(x + 7\) ) is not a factor. Nigel's conclusion is wrong.
    • Explain why Nigel's argument is not valid.
    • Show that \(( x + 7 )\) is a factor of \(x ^ { 3 } - 37 x + 84\).
    • Sketch the graph of \(y = x ^ { 3 } - 37 x + 84\), indicating the coordinates of the points at which the curve crosses the coordinate axes.
    • The graph in part (b) is translated by \(\binom { 1 } { 0 }\). Find the equation of the translated graph, giving your answer in the form \(y = x ^ { 3 } + a x ^ { 2 } + b x + c\) where \(a , b\) and \(c\) are integers.