Factorise: x2 – 1 – 2a – a2
Solution
Sure, let's factorise the given expression step by step:
The given expression is: x² – 1 – 2a – a²
First, we can rearrange the terms to group the x terms and the a terms together:
x² – 1 – a² + 2a
Next, we can recognise that the first two terms and the last two terms are both differences of squares. We can factorise each of these separately:
(x - 1)(x + 1) - (a - 1)(a + 1)
So, the factorised form of the given expression is:
(x - 1)(x + 1) - (a - 1)(a + 1)
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