ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

System of polynomial equations

Hey kiddo! So, have you ever heard of a puzzle where you have to find the values of different shapes that fit together perfectly? If you have, then you might have an idea about systems of polynomial equations.

Polynomials are just a fancy word for a math expression that has terms with variables and coefficients like 2x+3 or x^2 + 5x + 6. and an equation is just a statement that says that two things are equal. So, when we have multiple polynomials that are all equal to each other, we call that a system of polynomial equations.

Now imagine we have two different puzzles where the shapes have different sizes and numbers of sides. Both puzzles have different shapes but we are looking for the same variable values so that the shapes will fit together perfectly. This is kind of what a system of polynomial equations is like.

For example, let's assume we have two polynomials, 3x+4y=9 and 2x-3y=7, which we want to solve. We need to find the values of x and y that will make both equations true at the same time. It's like finding the missing pieces in a puzzle.

To solve these kinds of equations, we use various methods, like substitution or elimination. To use the substitution method, we can solve one equation for one variable, and then substitute that variable with its value in the other equation. That will make the other equation have only one variable, so we can easily solve for the value of that variable. Then, once we know one variable's value, we can substitute it back into one of the original equations to solve for the other variable.

In conclusion, a system of polynomial equations is like solving different puzzles but looking for the same values for the missing pieces in all of the puzzles. To solve them, we use methods like substitution and elimination to find the values that will make all the equations true at the same time.