1. **State the problem:** Find the degree and leading coefficient of the polynomial $$-9v^4 - 4v - 8 + v^5$$. 2. **Rewrite the polynomial in standard form:** Arrange terms in descending order of powers of $v$: $$v^5 - 9v^4 - 4v - 8$$ 3. **Identify the degree:** The degree of a polynomial is the highest power of the variable. Here, the highest power is $5$ from the term $v^5$. 4. **Identify the leading coefficient:** The leading coefficient is the coefficient of the term with the highest degree. The coefficient of $v^5$ is $1$ (since $v^5$ means $1 \times v^5$). **Final answer:** - Degree: $5$ - Leading coefficient: $1$