In this section, you will learn about a shortcut for multiplying polynomials. While shortcuts are nice, it is important to understand the math behind the shortcut. This video gives an example of using shortcuts to perform mathematical operations that you already know really well.
When you use shortcuts like cross multiplication to solve problems in math is it important to understand what you are actually doing.
For example, you have probably memorized the product of many pairs of numbers, such as 8 x 3 = 24 and 2 x 6 = 12. Even though you are using memorization as a shortcut to to solve these problems, you know that the math your are doing is actually repeated addition. In other words 8 x 3 = 8 + 8 + 8 = 24.
There are some great shortcuts you can use when multiplying polynomials. One of the shortcuts is called the vertical method. This method can make multiplying some polynomials much quicker and easier.
