[OS X TeX] \makebox{} Ignorance

[Charlie Ros5e]

Gentlefolk,

I want to produce the following lines in a document:

4. Given the graph of the polynomial function f
    a. What is the minimum degree this polynomial can have?

    b. Find a possible formula for f(x).

But I also want to have a graphic of a polynomial placed to the right of this text. I've never used \makebox{} before but it seemed to be the thing I need. I thought I could put two \makebox{} commands on the same line (with their widths chosen wisely), put the code for the problem statement shown above into the first \makebox{} and the code to display the graphic in the second \makebox{}. Doesn't work. The text of the problem statement gets put into a single line, and I can't figure out how to break it into the multiple lines I need.

Questions:

1. Is \makebox{} even the command I need for this application? 

        If no, what *should* I use?

        If yes, how do I control the placement of the lines?

2. Can I even successfully place my graphic into a makebox?

I've attached the .tex file, and am running OS X ver. 10.6.8, TexShop 2.43

Any enlightenment will be greatly appreciated!
____________________________________________
Charlie Rose
Boulder, Colorado, USA
Oberaudorf, Deutschland

Web Site:                    http://www.ros5e.com
My PGP Public Key: Temporarily Unavailable
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