Chapter 0 Surds and Indices

0.1 Different Kind of Numbers

1. Positive Integers 
2. Negative Integers 
3. Rational Numbers 
4. Irrational Numbers 
5. Rational and irrational numbers together make up the real numbers.

0.2 Surds
1. Surds are numbers left in root form to express its exact value. It has an infinite number
of non-recurring decimals. Therefore, surds are irrational numbers.

2. The rules of Surds:

(a) Rule 1: ab  a  b

Example 1:
(i) Simplify 18 . (ii) Simplify 12  3 .

a a
(b) Rule 2: 
b b
Example 2:
12 3 5
(i) . (ii)
121 15

(c) Rule 3: a c  b c  a  b  c
Example 3:
(i) 5 64 6 (ii)  2 5 3   2 5 3 . 
 b b a b a
(d) Rule 4:     Rationalise the denominator.
a a a a
Example 4:
1 2
(i) Rationalise . (ii) Rationalise .
3 3 2

c c ab n
(e) Rule 5:    Rationalise the denominator.
ab n ab n ab n
Example 5:
3 2 3  10
(i) Rationalise . (ii) Rationalise .
2 2 6 5

c c a b n
(f) Rule 6:    Rationalise Denominator
ab n ab n a b n
Example 6:
3 1
(i) Rationalise . (ii) Rationalise .
2 2 2 3
0.3 Indices
1. Indices are a useful way of more simply expressing large numbers. They also present us
with many useful properties for manipulating them using what are called the Law of Indices.

2. Law of Indices:

(a) Rule 1: a0  1
Example 7:
(i) Simplify 20000 0 .

1
(b) Rule 2: a m 
am
Example 8:
x 4
(i) Simplify 2 2 . (ii) Simplify .
y 2

(c) Rule 3: a m  a n  a m n
(to multiply expression with the same base, copy the base and add the indices.)
Example 9:
(i) 5  53 . (ii) n 3  4n 5  2n 1

(d) Rule 4: a m  a n  a mn

(to divide expressions with the same base, copy the base and subtract the indices.)
Example 10:
(i) 
5 y9  y5  (ii) 12 x 4  3x 2

(e) Rule 5: a 
m n
 a mn
Example 11:

(i) Simplify  y .
2 6
(ii) Simplify

2 x 4 y 3 2

.
2 x 
3 3
y5
 a m  bm   a  b 
m
(f) Rule 6:
Example 12:
2
 3
 3x   16  x   
2
(i) (ii)
 4

 a
m
m
(g) Rule 7: a n
 n am  n
.
Example 13:
2
 13 
y 
1

2
2 3
  2 y 
  .
 
3
(i) Simplify 8 . (ii) Simplify 3
2 y

(h) Rule 8: a  b x  c  b x  a  c   b x
Example 14:
4 1
(i) Simplify 2
 3  32 . (ii) Simplify 5
 7 x 5 .
3 x