What is the oblique asymptote of [tex]g(x)=\frac{x^2-3x-5}{x+2}[/tex]?

A. [tex]y = x + 5[/tex]
B. [tex]y = x - 5[/tex]
C. [tex]y = 5x[/tex]
D. [tex]y = -5x[/tex]



Answer :

To find the oblique asymptote of the function [tex]\( g(x) = \frac{x^2 - 3x - 5}{x + 2} \)[/tex], we need to perform polynomial long division.

Step-by-Step Solution:

1. Divide the leading term of the numerator by the leading term of the denominator:
[tex]\[ \frac{x^2}{x} = x \][/tex]

2. Multiply the entire divisor [tex]\((x+2)\)[/tex] by [tex]\(x\)[/tex] and subtract this from the original numerator [tex]\((x^2 - 3x - 5)\)[/tex]:
[tex]\[ (x^2 - 3x - 5) - (x \cdot (x + 2)) = (x^2 - 3x - 5) - (x^2 + 2x) \][/tex]
Simplify this:
[tex]\[ (x^2 - 3x - 5) - (x^2 + 2x) = -5x - 5 \][/tex]

3. Divide the next term of the result (-5x) by the leading term of the divisor (x):
[tex]\[ \frac{-5x}{x} = -5 \][/tex]

4. Multiply the entire divisor [tex]\((x + 2)\)[/tex] by [tex]\(-5\)[/tex] and subtract:
[tex]\[ (-5x - 5) - (-5 \cdot (x + 2)) = (-5x - 5) - (-5x - 10) \][/tex]
Simplify this:
[tex]\[ (-5x - 5) - (-5x - 10) = 5 \][/tex]

Our quotient from the division process is [tex]\(x - 5\)[/tex] and the remainder is [tex]\(5\)[/tex].

Since we are only interested in the oblique asymptote (ignoring the remainder as [tex]\(x \to \infty\)[/tex]), we identify the oblique asymptote by the quotient we obtained:
[tex]\[ y = x - 5 \][/tex]

Therefore, the oblique asymptote of [tex]\( g(x) = \frac{x^2 - 3x - 5}{x + 2} \)[/tex] is:

[tex]\( y = x - 5 \)[/tex]

From the given choices, the correct answer is [tex]\( y = x - 5 \)[/tex].