May 21st

May 21st

Difference of Two Squares

The difference of two squares trick is used with subtracting two numbers that are perfect squares. The trick is to find the product of the sum and difference of the numbers that are being squared. Students in high school will recognize this trick in its algebraic form:

a ² - b ² = ( a + b )( a - b )

Using the trick, add 24 + 16 = 40 and subtract 24 - 16 = 8. Then multiply 40 × 8 = 320.

The answer is 320.