Question

How do you factor `(x^2-9)×(x^3-8)`?

Answer 1

`(x^2-9) = (x-2)(x+2)`

`(x^3-8) = (x-2)(x^2+2x+4)`
(note that `(x^2+2x+4)` has no Real factors; this may have been an intentional trick)

So
`(x^2-9)xx(x^3-8)`
can be factored as
`(x-2)^2(x+2)(x^2+2x+4)`