SAT Mathematics Practice Test 6

The expression can be rewritten as $\left(\mathit{a}+\frac{\mathit{b}}{2}\right)\left(\mathit{a}+\frac{\mathit{b}}{2}\right)$.Using the distributive property, the expression yields $\left(\mathit{a}+\frac{\mathit{b}}{2}\right)\left(\mathit{a}+\frac{\mathit{b}}{2}\right)={\mathit{a}}^2+\frac{\mathit{a}\mathit{b}}{2}+\frac{\mathit{a}\mathit{b}}{2}+\frac{{\mathit{b}}^2}{4}$ Combining like termsgives ${\mathit{a}}^2+\mathit{a}\mathit{b}+\frac{{\mathit{b}}^2}{4}$
Choices A, B, and C are incorrect and may result from errors using the distributive property on the given expression or combining like terms.