My Math Forum Rational number

 Algebra Pre-Algebra and Basic Algebra Math Forum

 October 25th, 2012, 11:31 AM #1 Member   Joined: Aug 2012 Posts: 72 Thanks: 0 Rational number How I prove that beteen every some real numbers there is a rational number?
 October 25th, 2012, 11:37 AM #2 Global Moderator   Joined: May 2007 Posts: 6,761 Thanks: 696 Re: Rational number Look at the decimal expansions of the two real numbers and find the first decimal place where they differ. Insert a finite decimal expansion in between.
 October 25th, 2012, 01:11 PM #3 Member   Joined: Aug 2012 Posts: 72 Thanks: 0 Re: Rational number What if they are irrational?
 October 25th, 2012, 07:39 PM #4 Math Team     Joined: Jul 2011 From: North America, 42nd parallel Posts: 3,372 Thanks: 233 Re: Rational number We can approach any real number as close as we like by a rational approximation. Suppose a, b are distinct, irrational, real numbers. There is a fixed, finite distance between them but we can make the distance between a and our rational smaller than any fixed distance thereby putting our rational in between a and b. This is probably wrong but heres another idea... suppose 2 distinct, real, irrational numbers a and b give interval [a... b] divide both by a now you have the interval [1... b/a] or [b/a...1] the ordering doesn't matter and b/a is most likely irrational but definitely fixed in value. You can approach 1 by a rational approximation as close as you like and since b/a is a fixed distance from 1 you can always insert a rational between them. This should imply that there is a rational between any 2 distinct irrational real numbers, the size of the interval changes when dividing by 'a' but it is still a finite interval with fixed endpoints and 1 as an endpoint is very convenient to approach.
October 25th, 2012, 08:04 PM   #5
Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2010
From: St. Augustine, FL., U.S.A.'s oldest city

Posts: 12,211
Thanks: 521

Math Focus: Calculus/ODEs
Re: Rational number

Quote:
 Originally Posted by goodfeeling What if they are irrational?
[color=#008000]mathman[/color]'s suggestion doesn't imply that the decimal expansions ever need to terminate or repeat, only that the expansions will inevitably differ at some point if the two real numbers are distinct.

Another approach would be to take two distinct real numbers $r_1 and multiply both of them by an integer $0 sufficiently large such that we may insert the integer $p$ between them:

$qr_1

$r_1<\frac{p}{q}

October 26th, 2012, 12:16 AM   #6
Math Team

Joined: Jul 2011
From: North America, 42nd parallel

Posts: 3,372
Thanks: 233

Re: Rational number

Quote:
Originally Posted by MarkFL
Quote:
 Originally Posted by goodfeeling What if they are irrational?
[color=#008000]mathman[/color]'s suggestion doesn't imply that the decimal expansions ever need to terminate or repeat, only that the expansions will inevitably differ at some point if the two real numbers are distinct.

Another approach would be to take two distinct real numbers $r_1 and multiply both of them by an integer $0 sufficiently large such that we may insert the integer $p$ between them:

$qr_1

$r_1<\frac{p}{q}
Oh wow! I definitely like this idea. I'm never going to forget this.

 October 26th, 2012, 02:10 AM #7 Member   Joined: Aug 2012 Posts: 72 Thanks: 0 Re: Rational number Another question: How I prove between two every irrational number there is irrational number?
 October 26th, 2012, 02:37 AM #8 Math Team   Joined: Apr 2010 Posts: 2,780 Thanks: 361 Re: Rational number Difficulty with [color=#40FF40]mathman[/color]'s approach comes when the difference of the two numbers is an integer. In the questions, There must be (at least) two different numbers. For the latest question, multiply both numbers by a factor s.t. the denominators are equal. Between the numerators, there is an irrational number hence the quotient is irrational.
 October 26th, 2012, 03:50 AM #9 Member   Joined: Aug 2012 Posts: 72 Thanks: 0 Re: Rational number what is s.t.?
 October 26th, 2012, 05:29 AM #10 Math Team   Joined: Apr 2010 Posts: 2,780 Thanks: 361 Re: Rational number such that

 Tags number, rational

,

how to prove that a number is rational

Click on a term to search for related topics.
 Thread Tools Display Modes Linear Mode

 Similar Threads Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post shunya Elementary Math 3 March 18th, 2014 08:37 AM tva_vlad Algebra 1 October 7th, 2013 01:38 AM luketapis Algebra 8 June 22nd, 2012 12:18 AM guynamedluis Real Analysis 6 September 13th, 2011 11:52 PM samuraibob Algebra 5 August 2nd, 2010 11:45 PM

 Contact - Home - Forums - Cryptocurrency Forum - Top