Using algebra... n and n+2 are the integers n*(n+2)=288 n^2+2n=288 n^2+2n-288=0 288=2*2*2*2*2*3*3=(2*2*2*2)*(2*3*3)=16*18 and 18-16=2 factor (n+18)(n-16)=0 n+18=0 n=-18 n+2=-16 this is one solution n-16=0 n=16 n+2=18
this is another solution as you can see, it's just a matter of factoring 288
using arithmetic... √288=16.97≈17
16 and 18 are the integers (as well as -16 and -18)
