Question 355106: Could you please give me an example of a real number,that is not an irrational number? Found 2 solutions by robertb, Edwin McCravy:Answer by robertb(5830) (Show Source):
is a real number, and it is not irrational, it is RATIOnal because it
is the RATIO of two integers, 1 and 2.
and are irrational numbers because they cannot be
expressed as the ratio of two integers.
Notice that the first five letters of the word "rational" is "ratio". And
that means "the ratio of two integers".
In fact integers themselves are rational. For instance the integer
is rational because it can be expressed as the ratio of two integers or even as .
Repeating decimals are rational because they can be expressed as a ratio
of two integers.
.639639639639639.....
is a rational number because it doesn't have to be expressed as that decimal
that repeats forever, for it can be expressed instead as as
you can see from the following long division:
.639639639.......
111)71.000000000.......
66 6
4 40
3 33
1 070
999
710
666
440
333
1070
999
710
666
440
etc. etc. etc.
However this decimal
.232332333233332333332...
although it has a pattern, it in irrational because it is impossible
to find to integers that it is the ratio as we could above with
.639639639639639.....
is often believed to be the rational number but
22/7 is 3.142857142857142857....
and it keeps repeating that block of digits "142857" over and over
whereas the first digits of are 3.1415926535898...
and it never repeats a block of digits.
So is only close to . It isn't at all.
is rational but is irrational.
Edwin