Find the minimum value of \(y = 3x^{2} - x - 6\).

Assessment: WAEC SSCE - Further Mathematics - 2016 (Objective) Subject: Further Mathematics

Question 1 Report

Find the minimum value of \(y = 3x^{2} - x - 6\).

Answer Details
To find the minimum value of the quadratic function, we first need to find the vertex of the parabola. We can do this by using the formula: \(-\frac{b}{2a}\) where \(a\) is the coefficient of the squared term, and \(b\) is the coefficient of the linear term. In this case, \(a = 3\) and \(b = -1\), so: \(-\frac{b}{2a} = -\frac{-1}{2(3)} = \frac{1}{6}\) This tells us that the vertex of the parabola occurs at \(x = \frac{1}{6}\). To find the minimum value of the function, we substitute this value of \(x\) into the function: \(y = 3\left(\frac{1}{6}\right)^{2} - \frac{1}{6} - 6 = -6\frac{1}{12} = -\frac{25}{4}\) Therefore, the minimum value of the function is \(-6\frac{1}{12}\), which is equivalent to \(-\frac{25}{4}\). So the answer is option B.

Download The App On Google Playstore

Everything you need to excel in your exams

Green Bridge CBT Mobile App
Personalized AI Learning Chat Assistant
200,000+ Exam Questions Across IGCSE, JAMB, WAEC & NECO
Over 3,900 Lesson Notes
Offline Support - Learn Anytime, Anywhere
Green Bridge Timetable
Literature Summaries & Potential Questions
Track Your Performance & Progress
In-depth Explanations for Comprehensive Learning