Chapter 3 - Polynomial and Rational Functions - Section 3.1 Polynomial Functions and Models - 3.1 Assess Your Understanding - Page 208: 24

Not a polynomial

We re-arrange the given function as follows: $F(x)=\dfrac{x^2-5}{x^3} \\ = x^{-1} -5x^{-3}$ A polynomial can be defined as a function containing only terms where $x$ is raised to a positive, integer power or constant. We can see from the given function that $x$ is raised to the negative third power, so this is not a polynomial function.