1.7: Past-paper question 1

4PM1/2/June/2024 — Question 1 · 6 marks

f(x)=6x313x2+ax10wherea is a constantf(x) = 6x^3 - 13x^2 + ax - 10 \quad \mathrm{where} a \text{ is a constant}
Given that (3x2)\displaystyle (3x - 2) is a factor of f(x)\displaystyle f(x)
(a) show that a=21\displaystyle a = 21
(2)
(b) Hence show algebraically that the curve y=f(x)\displaystyle y = f(x) has only one intersection with the x\displaystyle x-axis.
(4)