Debby needed one-third of a cup of water for 1 flower if she had nine flowers how many cups wold she need

Pls! does anybody know a shortcut for answering these types of questions in the future?

Its due ! write an equation in which the quadratic expression 2x^2-2x 12 equals 0. show the expression in factored form and explain what your solutions mean for the equation. show your work.

[10 points, algebra 2-simplifying complex fractions]according to my answer key the restrictions are -1 and 4. but why not positive 1?