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In elementary algebra, root rationalisation (or rationalization) is a process by which radicals in the denominator of an algebraic fraction are eliminated.. If the denominator is a monomial in some radical, say , with k < n, rationalisation consists of multiplying the numerator and the denominator by , and replacing by x (this is allowed, as, by definition, a n th root of x is a number that ...
Rationalisation (mathematics), the process of removing a square root or imaginary number from the denominator of a fraction; Rationalization (psychology), a psychological defense mechanism in which perceived controversial behaviors are logically justified also known as "making excuses"
A rational fraction is an algebraic fraction whose numerator and denominator are both polynomials. Thus 3 x x 2 + 2 x − 3 {\displaystyle {\frac {3x}{x^{2}+2x-3}}} is a rational fraction, but not x + 2 x 2 − 3 , {\displaystyle {\frac {\sqrt {x+2}}{x^{2}-3}},} because the numerator contains a square root function.
The square root of a positive integer is the product of the roots of its prime factors, because the square root of a product is the product of the square roots of the factors. Since p 2 k = p k , {\textstyle {\sqrt {p^{2k}}}=p^{k},} only roots of those primes having an odd power in the factorization are necessary.
As (+) = and (+) + =, the sum and the product of conjugate expressions do not involve the square root anymore. This property is used for removing a square root from a denominator, by multiplying the numerator and the denominator of a fraction by the conjugate of the denominator (see Rationalisation).
In mathematics, "rational" is often used as a noun abbreviating "rational number". The adjective rational sometimes means that the coefficients are rational numbers. For example, a rational point is a point with rational coordinates (i.e., a point whose coordinates are rational numbers); a rational matrix is a matrix of rational numbers; a rational polynomial may be a polynomial with rational ...
The square root of 2 is an algebraic number equal to the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle with legs of length 1.. An algebraic number is a number that is a root of a non-zero polynomial in one variable with integer (or, equivalently, rational) coefficients.
In mathematics, a rational function is any function that can be defined by a rational fraction, which is an algebraic fraction such that both the numerator and the denominator are polynomials. The coefficients of the polynomials need not be rational numbers ; they may be taken in any field K .