A senior thesis by Mack Fox, Fall 2016

Abstract: This article will show the derivation of closed form radical expressions for polynomials of degree n≤4. For degree one and two polynomials, it is simplistic to show solvability by radicals. For degree three and four polynomials however, these derivations can be quite complex. Due to this, much greater detail is shown throughout those sections. We will also introduce the reader to aspects of Group and Field theory which will serve as a stepping stone to Galois theory. We will use Galois theory to show that for polynomials of degree n≥5, no closed form radical expression for the roots exists.