Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2017/iii/paper-339/3/b/ii/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 339 3 b ii Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-06
For , the coefficient symmetry yieldsThus equals its reversed-conjugate polynomial. If is a root of a polynomial, with , this identity gives , provingThe reciprocal-conjugate root pairing also preserves the multiplicity of a root: reversal and complex conjugation take each factor associated with to the corresponding factor associated with , with the same exponent.
Since , no zero root of a polynomial occurs, so the reciprocal operation is always defined on the roots of a polynomial. Roots off the unit circle are paired on opposite sides of it; roots of a polynomial on the unit circle are fixed by this operation. Pairing alone does not force even multiplicity at those fixed roots of a polynomial; that extra fact uses nonnegativity.
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