# Surds

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#1
Someone please explain to me how to do surds - I just don't get it.
My dad's dad was a mathematician and my dad doesn't get it either so like help 😂
0
3 years ago
#2
(Original post by Ellen Ringrose)
Someone please explain to me how to do surds - I just don't get it.
My dad's dad was a mathematician and my dad doesn't get it either so like help 😂
What part of surds? surds is kind of a big topic..
0
3 years ago
#3
Perhaps post a question you found hard?
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#4
(Original post by Relentas)
What part of surds? surds is kind of a big topic..
Literally everything for IGCSE maths (higher tier, Edexcel)
0
3 years ago
#5
(Original post by Ellen Ringrose)
Literally everything for IGCSE maths (higher tier, Edexcel)
Oh, we're doing the same exam board at least from what I've seen Edexcel IGCSE surds questions are just about applying rules. The most important one is probably (e.g. ) since you can usually use that rule to simplify surds, which comes up on its own and as part of expanding brackets/proof-like surd questions. The other thing that comes up is rationalising the denominator, which is basically just multiplying it such that the denominator gets squared/cancelled-out and thus becomes rational. For example, if your fraction were you would multiply it by so that the denominator gets squared and becomes 2. If you had a denominator like containing a rational number, you would have to multiply it by , switching the signs in the same way as you would in a difference of two squares equation.

Does that help? If there's anything more specific or a certain question you're having trouble with, let me know.
1
#6
(Original post by Sonechka)
Oh, we're doing the same exam board at least from what I've seen Edexcel IGCSE surds questions are just about applying rules. The most important one is probably (e.g. ) since you can usually use that rule to simplify surds, which comes up on its own and as part of expanding brackets/proof-like surd questions. The other thing that comes up is rationalising the denominator, which is basically just multiplying it such that the denominator gets squared/cancelled-out and thus becomes rational. For example, if your fraction were you would multiply it by so that the denominator gets squared and becomes 2. If you had a denominator like containing a rational number, you would have to multiply it by , switching the signs in the same way as you would in a difference of two squares equation.

Does that help? If there's anything more specific or a certain question you're having trouble with, let me know.

Thank you so so much!!! <3
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