Question

Find the 4th term (x-y)^12

Answer 1

Answer:

The fourth term of the expansion is -220 * x^9 * y^3

Step-by-step explanation:

Question:

Find the fourth term in (x-y)^12

Solution:

Notation: "n choose k", or combination of k objects from n objects,

C(n,k) = n! / ( k! (n-k)! )

For example, C(12,4) = 12! / (4! 8!) = 495

Using the binomial expansion formula

(a+b)^n

= C(n,0)a^n + C(n,1)a^(n-1)b + C(n,2)a^(n-2)b^2 + C(n,3)a^(n-3)b^3 + C(n,4)a^(n-4)b^4 +....+C(n,n)b^n

For (x-y)^12, n=12, k=3, a=x, b=-y, and the fourth term is

C(n,3)a^(n-3)b^3

=C(12,3) * x^(12-3) * (-y)^(3)

= 220*x^9*(-y)^3

= -220 * x^9 * y^3