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Find a quadratic graph which is at most 1 unit of distance away from each of the six points
$$
(x, y) = (\pm 1, 0), (\pm 2, 4), (\pm 3, 16)
$$
Can you find the smallest distance from each of these points to your quadratic, either exactly or to two decimal places?
Can you find another quadratic graph for which the largest of these smallest distances from the points to the curve is smaller?
As an open extension, explore what you can say about configurations of points at least one of which must necessarily lie more than one unit of distance away from a quadratic.
Erratic Quadratic
Age 16 to 18
Challenge Level 
Find a quadratic graph which is at most 1 unit of distance away from each of the six points
$$
(x, y) = (\pm 1, 0), (\pm 2, 4), (\pm 3, 16)
$$
Can you find the smallest distance from each of these points to your quadratic, either exactly or to two decimal places?
Can you find another quadratic graph for which the largest of these smallest distances from the points to the curve is smaller?
As an open extension, explore what you can say about configurations of points at least one of which must necessarily lie more than one unit of distance away from a quadratic.
