Expert: Bobby Soltani - 1/28/2005

Question
I am trying to solve this problem using the Quadratic Equation....

3h2 (2 is squared) + 12h -135

any help is appreciated...

Answer
Hi Scott,

The quadratic equation is:

(-b +/- SQRT(b^2 - 4ac))/(2a)

where a is the coefficient of the squared term, b is the coefficient of the h term, and c is the constant.  For this problem, we have a = 3, b = 12 and c = -135

(-12 +/- SQRT(144 - 4*3*(-135)))/(6)
(-12 +/- SQRT(1764))/6

(-12 +/- 42)/6

now let's break the +/- into the two equations

(-12 + 42)/6   and (-12 - 42)/6
30/6 = 5      and   (-54/6) = -9

So, the roots are 5, and -9.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Bobby