This task continues "Zeroes and factorization of a quadratic polynomial I.'' The argument here generalizes, as shown in "Zeroes and factorization of a general polynomial'' to show that a polynomial of degree d can have at most d roots. In the quadratic case, an alternative argument for why there can be at most two roots can be given using the quadratic formula and this is done in the second solution below.
This task is intended for instructional purposes to help students see more clearly the link between factorization of polynomials and zeroes of polynomial functions. Students who are familiar with the quadratic formula should be encouraged to think about the first solution which extends to polynomials of higher degree where formulas for the roots are either very complex or not possible to find.
