CAIE P2 2019 November — Question 4

Exam BoardCAIE
ModuleP2 (Pure Mathematics 2)
Year2019
SessionNovember
TopicFactor & Remainder Theorem
TypeSolve p(exponential) = 0

4 The polynomial \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\) is defined by $$\mathrm { p } ( x ) = a x ^ { 3 } + a x ^ { 2 } - 15 x - 18$$ where \(a\) is a constant. It is given that ( \(x - 2\) ) is a factor of \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\).
  1. Find the value of \(a\).
  2. Using this value of \(a\), factorise \(\mathrm { p } ( x )\) completely.
  3. Hence solve the equation \(\mathrm { p } \left( \mathrm { e } ^ { \sqrt { } y } \right) = 0\), giving the answer correct to 2 significant figures.