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A simple fraction (also known as a common fraction or vulgar fraction, where vulgar is Latin for "common") is a rational number written as a / b or , where a and b are both integers. [9] As with other fractions, the denominator (b) cannot be zero. Examples include 1 2 , − 8 5 , −8 5 , and 8 −5 .
Continued fractions can also be applied to problems in number theory, and are especially useful in the study of Diophantine equations. In the late eighteenth century Lagrange used continued fractions to construct the general solution of Pell's equation, thus answering a question that had fascinated mathematicians for more than a thousand years. [9]
Consider, for example, the rational number 415 / 93 , which is around 4.4624. As a first approximation, start with 4, which is the integer part; 415 / 93 = 4 + 43 / 93 . The fractional part is the reciprocal of 93 / 43 which is about 2.1628.
A unit fraction is a positive fraction with one as its numerator, 1/ n. It is the multiplicative inverse (reciprocal) of the denominator of the fraction, ...
Decimal. Place value of number in decimal system. The decimal numeral system (also called the base-ten positional numeral system and denary / ˈdiːnəri / [1] or decanary) is the standard system for denoting integer and non-integer numbers. It is the extension to non-integer numbers (decimal fractions) of the Hindu–Arabic numeral system.
In the second step, they were divided by 3. The final result, 4 / 3 , is an irreducible fraction because 4 and 3 have no common factors other than 1. The original fraction could have also been reduced in a single step by using the greatest common divisor of 90 and 120, which is 30. As 120 ÷ 30 = 4, and 90 ÷ 30 = 3, one gets
In mathematics, a rational number is a number that can be expressed as the quotient or fraction of two integers, a numerator p and a non-zero denominator q. [1] For example, is a rational number, as is every integer (for example, ). The set of all rational numbers, also referred to as " the rationals ", [2] the field of ...
The Romans used a duodecimal rather than a decimal system for fractions, as the divisibility of twelve (12 = 2 2 × 3) makes it easier to handle the common fractions of 1 ⁄ 3 and 1 ⁄ 4 than does a system based on ten (10 = 2 × 5).