Re: How do you draw a quadratic function without plugging in numbers and plotting points?
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If you're taking Algebra, you will probably learn how to do some of this. If you take Pre-Calculus or Calculus, you will learn many other techniques that will enable you to "see" what a particular quadratic might look like. Barring that, unless it's a "basic" graph, you might have to be stuck with plotting (some) points. This could become tedious.
Here's a site where you can look at the graph of any quadratic (or any other polynomial in one variable) you specify:
http://www.wolframalpha.com/examples/PlottingAndGraphics.html
Just click into the first "box" - "plot a function of one variable" - and it will take you to a page where you can key in your function and see a graph of it !!!
P.S. .......there's a lot of other interesting "stuff" on this page, too!! Explore some of it !!
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