Question

consider the following two expressions, the only difference being the presence or absence of parentheses.
expression 1 : 3x²
expression 2 : (3x)²
calculate the difference between the two expressions when x = 4; that is, evaluate both expressions then subtract one value from the other
express your answer numerically.
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Explanation:

Step1: Evaluate Expression 1 at $x=4$

First calculate $x^2$, then multiply by 3:
$3x^2 = 3\times(4)^2 = 3\times16 = 48$

Step2: Evaluate Expression 2 at $x=4$

First multiply 3 and $x$, then square the result:
$(3x)^2 = (3\times4)^2 = (12)^2 = 144$

Step3: Calculate the difference

Subtract the smaller value from the larger value (or compute the absolute difference; here we do $(3x)^2 - 3x^2$):
$144 - 48 = 96$

Answer:

96