The product of a rational number with an irrational number is an irrational number. To see this assume that x is a rational number and y an irrational number. Then let us assume that the product xy is rational, which means that there are integers a,b such that xy=a/b. But then we obtain y=(1/x)(a/b) which is also rational since the set of rational numbers is closed under multiplication. But this is a contradiction since y was assumed to be an irrational number.
Step-by-step explanation:
Question:Now consider the product of a nonzero rational number and an irrational number. Again, assume x =a/b , where a and b are integers and b ≠ 0. This time let y be an irrational number. If we assume the product x · y is rational, we can set the product equal to m/n, where m and n are integers and n ≠ 0. The steps for solving this equation for y are shown. Based on what we established about the classification of y and using the closure of integers, what does the equation tell you about the type of number y must be for the product to be rational? What conclusion can you now make about the result of multiplying a rational and an irrational number?
