ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Multiplicative quadratic form

A multiplicative quadratic form is like a math puzzle where we have to put numbers in certain places to make it work a certain way. This puzzle has an x and a y, which are numbers we can pick, and it's like we have to put the x and the y into the puzzle in a certain way so that it will equal another number.

We can draw the puzzle as x^2*y or x*y^2, which means we take the number x and multiply it by itself (which makes it squared) and then multiply it by y. Or we take the number y and multiply it by itself (which makes it squared) and then multiply it by x. Whichever way we do it, we end up multiplying x and y together twice, one of those times to make it squared.

This type of puzzle is special because when we have it set up a certain way, we can use it to help solve other math problems where we need to find two numbers that multiply together to make a certain number. We call these problems factoring, and using a multiplicative quadratic form can make them easier to solve.

So in summary, a multiplicative quadratic form is a math puzzle where we have to put numbers into a certain formula to make it work a certain way. It's like a tool we can use to help solve other math problems, and it involves multiplying two numbers together twice in a specific way.
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