Exercise 2.4.3

Let f = x 2 + bx + c F [ x ] . Use the definition of discriminant given in the text to show that Δ ( f ) = b 2 4 c .

Answers

Proof. Let f = x 2 + bx + c , b , c F .

Δ = ( x 1 x 2 ) 2 = x 1 2 + x 2 2 2 x 1 x 2 = ( x 1 + x 2 ) 2 4 x 1 x 2 = σ 1 2 4 σ 2 .

The ring homomorphism which sends σ 1 on b and σ 2 on c send Δ on

Δ ( b , c ) = b 2 4 c ,

which is by definition the discriminant of x 2 + bx + c . □

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2022-07-19 00:00
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