After you replace $x$ with $0$, think about what happens to $x^{3}$, $x^{2}$, and $x$ terms when $x = 0$. Which of these become 0?

In any polynomial, the term with no $x$ in it is called the constant term. When you plug in $x = 0$, that constant term is the only part that stays the same.

Ask yourself whether you actually need to know the value of $a$ to compute $p(0)$, or if substituting $x=0$ already gives you the value directly.

In a new expression line, type 0^3 - a*0^2 + 9a*0 - 27. Because every term with a is multiplied by 0, Desmos will simplify this expression to a single number; that number is the value of $p(0)$.

The function is

The notation $p(0)$ means: take the formula for $p(x)$ and replace every $x$ with $0$.

Substitute $x = 0$ into the expression:

Now evaluate each piece:

• $0^{3} = 0$
• $0^{2} = 0$, so $a \cdot 0^{2} = a \cdot 0 = 0$
• $9a \cdot 0 = 0$

So the expression becomes

Now add the simplified terms:

So the value of $p(0)$ is $-27$.