Simplifing+Radicals



Simplifying Radicals is when you find the square root of the problem. You will be working with squared numbers like 4, 9, 16, 25 ect. You have to get the all possible numbers and varablies out from under the square root sign. Lets take a look at the following information that will explain radicals in more detail.

** Definition of the Radical **
The radical symbol is initially defined as the inverse of raising a number to a power:

Basic Laws of Radicals
The basic laws follow from the definition:

The basic laws are used to simplify radicals. Laws 2 and 3 allow combining or separating radicals by multiplication and division, and Law 1 allows removal (simplifying!) the radical.

Simplest Form Radicals - Examples
Simplifying radicals is done by factoring and applying the definition: 1) 2)   3)

With practice, simplifying radicals becomes second-nature by looking for perfect powers: More examples:

4) 5) 6)