Question

How do you find the vertex of this parabola? I just plotted the points down on a graphing calculator, but I figure there's a better way.

Answer 1

When you look at the table, find the y value that has equivalent values on both sides. For example, the y value for the vertex here is 10. After it, the values are 7,-2, and 17, and above it, the values are 7 and -2. This value should also be either the largest y value or smallest y value (depending on whether the parabola opens up or down).