MHB Big Denominator = Small Fraction

  • Thread starter Thread starter mathdad
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Fraction
AI Thread Summary
A fraction with a larger denominator represents a smaller value, as illustrated by the comparison of 1/45 and 1/2. In practical terms, dividing one pizza into 45 pieces results in smaller individual portions than dividing it into 2 pieces. The mathematical reasoning behind this is that the denominator indicates how many equal parts a whole is divided into, making each part smaller with a larger denominator. Therefore, 1/45 is indeed less than 1/2. This concept is fundamental in understanding fractions and their relative sizes.
mathdad
Messages
1,280
Reaction score
0
Someone once told me that a fraction with a big denominator is a small fraction but no mathematical reason was given.

So, 1/45 < 1/2.

Why?
 
Mathematics news on Phys.org
RTCNTC said:
Someone once told me that a fraction with a big denominator is a small fraction but no mathematical reason was given.

So, 1/45 < 1/2.

Why?

1 pizza divided into 45 pieces vs. 1 pizza divided into 2 pieces

... which pieces are smaller?
 
To answer your question, (1 pizza)/2 is bigger.
 
Seemingly by some mathematical coincidence, a hexagon of sides 2,2,7,7, 11, and 11 can be inscribed in a circle of radius 7. The other day I saw a math problem on line, which they said came from a Polish Olympiad, where you compute the length x of the 3rd side which is the same as the radius, so that the sides of length 2,x, and 11 are inscribed on the arc of a semi-circle. The law of cosines applied twice gives the answer for x of exactly 7, but the arithmetic is so complex that the...
Is it possible to arrange six pencils such that each one touches the other five? If so, how? This is an adaption of a Martin Gardner puzzle only I changed it from cigarettes to pencils and left out the clues because PF folks don’t need clues. From the book “My Best Mathematical and Logic Puzzles”. Dover, 1994.
Thread 'Imaginary Pythagoras'
I posted this in the Lame Math thread, but it's got me thinking. Is there any validity to this? Or is it really just a mathematical trick? Naively, I see that i2 + plus 12 does equal zero2. But does this have a meaning? I know one can treat the imaginary number line as just another axis like the reals, but does that mean this does represent a triangle in the complex plane with a hypotenuse of length zero? Ibix offered a rendering of the diagram using what I assume is matrix* notation...

Similar threads

Back
Top