Difference between revisions of "Binomial Theorem"
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==Usage== | ==Usage== | ||
− | Many factorizations involve complicated polynomials with binomial coefficients. For example, | + | Many factorizations involve complicated polynomials with binomial coefficients. For example, if a contest problem involved the polynomial <math>x^5+4x^4+6x^3+4x^2+x</math>, I would factor it as such: <math> x(x^4+4x^3+6x^2+4x+1)=x(x+1)^{4}</math>. It is a good idea to be familiar with binomial expansions, and knowing the first few coefficients would also be beneficial. |
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
*[[Combinatorics]] | *[[Combinatorics]] |
Revision as of 13:55, 26 June 2006
The Theorem
First discovered by Newton, the Binomial Theorem states that for real or complex a,b,
This may be shown for the integers easily:
Repeatedly using the distributive property, we see that for a term , we must choose
of the
terms to contribute an
to the term, and then each of the other
terms of the product must contribute a
. Thus the coefficient of
is
. Extending this to all possible values of
from
to
, we see that
.
Usage
Many factorizations involve complicated polynomials with binomial coefficients. For example, if a contest problem involved the polynomial , I would factor it as such:
. It is a good idea to be familiar with binomial expansions, and knowing the first few coefficients would also be beneficial.