A quartic polynomial takes the form 

where the  are the coefficients. The value we are trying to identify is , the quartic term.

An equation can be formed from each given ordered pair by substituting the abscissa for  and the ordinate for . The problem can be simplified somewhat by noting that, since the -intercept of the graph of  is given as , . Therefore, we are looking for the coefficients of 

.

The equations formed from the other four points are

Adding two to both sides of each equation:

This is a system of four linear equations in four variables, which can be rewritten as the matrix multiplication equation , where  is the matrix of coefficients, , the column matrix of variables, and  the matrix of constants; this equation is 

We are trying to calculate ; since ,  , or

This calculates to

.

Since the cubic term is requested, select . The correct response is .

The bottom row of an initial simplex tableau is the one that represents the objective function to be minimized; the other rows represent constraints on the variables in the system. In a system of three variables, the first three entries of one of the rows represent the coefficients of those variables; the next three represent those of slack variables introduced into the system, which were not part of the original inequality. The last entry gives the number the linear expression is less than or equal to. Therefore, the first row represents the inequality

,

which is a constraint of the system.

The objective function in a simplex method - the function to be minimized - is represented by the bottom row of the initial tableau, with the coefficients the additive inverses of the entries in that row. The objective function of the system is therefore .

When writing the initial simplex method tableau for a system of linear inequalities, first, recast each inequality as an equation by introducing three other variables, , called slack variables, as follows:

becomes

becomes 

becomes 

The system of three inequalities in three equations becomes a system of three equations in six variables. The coefficients form the first three rows of the augmented matrix that sets up the initial simplex tableau.

The bottom row comprises the additive inverses of the coefficients of the expression to be maximized, or the objective function. 

The initial tableau is therefore

.

The statement is false. To show the reason for this, let the original minimization problem be as follows - and note that the objective function has three variables, so there will be three linear constraints other than the trivial ones:

Minimize  subject to:

To find the dual maximization problem:

First, form the matrix of coefficients of the constraints (other than the positivity constraints) and the objective function, with the objective function on the bottom:

Next, transpose the matrix:

This is the coefficient matrix of the dual maximization problem. The bottom row represents the coefficients of the objective function. This function is given to be , so

.

The coefficient matrix of the original problem is 

Since the entries in the bottom row are still unknown, no information about the objective function of the original minimization problem has been revealed.

Write the augmented matrix of the system using the coefficients of the equations:

Perform the Gauss-Jordan elimination method on this matrix to get it in reduced row-echelon form. Use the following row operations:

The matrix is now in reduced row-echelon form. This matrix can be interpreted to mean:

.

The only solution is .

The denominator of the fraction, , can be factored as

 .

The partial fractions decomposition of a rational expression is the sum of fractions with these factors, with the numerator above each denominator being degree one less. Thus, the partial fractions decomposition of the given expression takes the form

for some . 

Express the fractions with a common denominator:

Eliminate the denominators and perform some algebra:

Set the coefficients equal to form the linear system

This can be solved using Gauss-Jordan elimination on the augmented matrix 

Perform the following row operations on the matrix to get it into reduced row-echelon form:

, so the partial fractions decomposition is 

,

or, simplified, 

.

The denominator of the fraction, , can be factored as

The partial fractions decomposition of a rational expression is the sum of fractions with these factors, with the numerator above each denominator being degree one less. Thus, the partial fractions decomposition of the given expression takes the form

for some .

Express the fractions with a common denominator:

Eliminate the denominators and perform some algebra:

Set the coefficients equal to form the linear system

This can be solved using Gauss-Jordan elimination on the augmented matrix 

Perform the following row operations on the matrix to get it into reduced row-echelon form:

, so the partial fractions decomposition is 

,

or, simplified, 

.