Question

How do you factor `8x^2-17x+2`?

Answer 1

`8x^2-17x+2`

Look for integer factoring:
`"Factors (ignoring signs) of " 8 = {(1,8),(2,4)}`
`"Factors (ignoring signs) of " 2 ={(1,2)}`

Checking for a combination that adds up to `17`
quickly gives
`(8x-1)(x-2)`
as the required factors