prove that the sum 3/4 and sqrt10 is irrational. Show your work, and in 1-2 sentences explain why the sum is irrational

1 answer

To show that the sum \( \frac{3}{4} + \sqrt{10} \) is irrational, we start by recognizing the nature of each component in the sum.

  1. Identify if individual components are rational or irrational:

    • \( \frac{3}{4} \) is a rational number (as it can be expressed as a fraction of two integers).
    • \( \sqrt{10} \) is an irrational number (as it cannot be expressed as a fraction of two integers).
  2. Consider the sum of a rational and an irrational number:

    • The sum of a rational number and an irrational number is always irrational. This is a fundamental property of rational and irrational numbers.

Thus, since \( \frac{3}{4} \) is rational and \( \sqrt{10} \) is irrational, we can conclude:

\[ \frac{3}{4} + \sqrt{10} \text{ is irrational.} \]

Explanation: The sum \( \frac{3}{4} + \sqrt{10} \) is irrational because the sum of a rational number (in this case, \( \frac{3}{4} \)) and an irrational number (here, \( \sqrt{10} \)) results in an irrational number, as it cannot be expressed as a fraction of two integers.