MATH REFRESHER

Fractions
A fraction is a mathematical way of expressing a value that is less than a whole unit or one. It can also be use to express a ratio of two values. A fraction consist of two parts, a numerator and a denominator. The denominator is the number that the numerator is being divided by. There are three types of fractions: proper, improper and mixed fractions. A proper fraction consists of a numerator that is smaller than the denominator while an improper fraction contains a larger numerator than the denominator.

Mixed fractions contain an integer and a proper fraction. Mixed fractions and improper fractions are interchangeable.

Comparing In order to find out which of two fractions is larger, a technique called cross multiplying is used. The first cross product is the multiplication of the first numerator with the second denominator. The second cross product is the multiplication of the second numerator with the first denominator. If the first cross product is larger than the second, then the first fraction is larger than the second. Below, two fractions are compared using this method and it can be seen that the second fraction is larger.

Adding

In order to add fractions, there are several rules about what format they can be in. First off, mixed fractions must be converted to improper fractions before they can be added. Secondly, fractions can only be added if they have a common denominator. In order to add fractions with different denominators, it is necessary to convert them so they have the same denominator. There are two methods of adding fractions. The first method is the method of the lowest common denominator (LCD). This method simply involves making a list of the multiples of each denominator and finding the lowest number common to both lists. This is the LCD. Once the LCD is found, the multiple needed to convert each denominator to the LCD is determined and both the numerator and the denominator of each fraction is multiplied by this number. Once the fractions are converted, the numerators can be added.

The second method involves simply multiplying the denominator of the second fraction by both the numerator and the denominator of the first fraction and multiplying the denominator of the first fraction by both the numerator and the denominator of the second fraction. Then the numerators are added as for the first method. However, in many cases the resulting fraction is not in its lowest terms and needs to be reduced. This means that it is possible to factor out a common number from both the numerator and denominator. Once the fraction is reduced, the answer should match the answer obtained using the first method. This method makes the first step easier but adds a step at the end.

If the fractions to be added are mixed fractions, the fractions need to be converted to improper fractions as stated above. When adding a fraction and a whole number, the whole number is treated as a mixed fraction and also needs to be converted into an improper fraction before it can be added.

Subtracting Subtracting fractions is just like adding fractions. The denominators of all of the fractions must be the same. The only difference is that the numerators are subtracted rather than added. Multiplying Multiplying fractions does not require that the fractions have the same denominator. Instead, the numerators are multiplied with each other and the denominators are multiplied with each other. However, the resulting fraction may not be in lowest terms so it may need to be reduced.

It is possible to reduce before multiplying. This is useful if there are many numbers to multiply or if the numbers are large. To do this, factor each of the numerators and each of the denominators. Once the numerators and denominators are factored, numbers that appear in both the numerators and the denominators can be eliminated. It does not matter which numerator or which denominator the number originally appeared in.

Just as in addition, the fractions need to be proper or improper fractions in order to multiply them. Therefore, mixed fractions need to be converted to improper fractions. Whole numbers however do not need to be converted to improper fractions. The whole number can simply be multiplied to the numerator. Dividing Fractions In order to divide fractions it is necessary to only consider two fractions at a time. To divide fractions the second fractions is inverted. The numerator becomes the denominator and vice versa. Once the fraction is inverted the fractions are then multiplied in the usual fashion. In order

to consider more than two fractions, first the first two fractions are divided. Then the resulting new fraction and the next fraction are divided.

As before with adding and multiplying, mixed numbers need to be converted to improper fractions before dividing. When dividing a whole number by a fraction, use the same rule. Invert the fraction and multiply. However, if the fraction is being divided by the whole number, the whole number must be inverted and then multiplied. Inverting a whole number is done by creating a fraction with one in the numerator and the whole number in the denominator.

Exponential Expressions
The use of an exponential is a very convenient way of expressing the repeated multiplication of a number by itself. The exponent is placed to the upper right of the base number and signifies how many times the base term is multiplied by itself

When the exponent is a 2, it is referred to as squaring the term and if it is a three, it is called the cube of the term. Fractional exponents are also possible. These are generally called roots. 1/2 is the square root.

Adding Exponents In order to add exponential terms, both the base and the exponent must be the same. Otherwise, they must be multiplied out before they can be added.

Multiplying Exponents

To multiply exponential terms, the bases of the terms must be the same. If the bases are the same, the exponents can be added to obtain the answer.

Dividing Exponents The rules for division are the same as the rules for multiplication of exponents. The bases must be the same and the exponents are subtracted.

Scientific Notation If a number is very large or very small, sometimes it is easier to shorten it using exponents.

Factorials In statistics, a common term is a factorial. The factorial of a number is the product of each counting number up to and including that number. For instance the factorial of 5 is 1 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 5. The factorial of a number is noted by an exclamation symbol. So the factorial of 5 is 5! A special note is that the factorial of zero is established to equal one. Also, factorials cannot be added, subtracted or multiplied without calculating them out first. However, when dividing factorials, it can be noted that many of the terms will cancel out.

Logarithms
Logarithms are exponents that are relative to a given base. Calculations involving multiplication, division, raising to powers and extraction of roots can usually be carried out more easily with the use of logarithms. Logarithms contain three parts: the number, the base, and the logarithm. In the following logarithm example, the number is 1000, the base is 10 and the logarithm is 3.

There are two types of logarithms that appear most often. The first type has a base of ten like the example. The second type has a base of e where e ~ 2.718. Since these logarithms appear so often, they are abbreviated. For a logarithm with a base of 10, the base is not written and it is assumed. For a logarithm with a base of e, it is abbreviated to ln, also with no written base. Rules of logarithms It is possible to change the base of a logarithm. This is helpful when using bases that are not the two most common bases. This makes it possible to change the base of the logarithm so that it can be calculated using a calculator since most calculators only have the two bases.

It is also possible to split a logarithm apart. This becomes more useful when variables are involved. It also becomes useful later when graphing data on a log scale and finding an equation for the line. If you evaluate this rule in terms of the multiplication rule for exponents, it becomes easy to see why this rule is true.

Using the rule of multiplication, logarithms can be evaluated with exponents. If the number contains an exponent, it is possible to pull that outside of the logarithm

What is e?
"e" is a numerical constant that is equal to 2.71828. Just as pi (3.14159) is a numerical constant that occurs whenever the circumference of a circle is divided by its diameter. The value of "e" is found in many mathematical formulas such as those describing a nonlinear increase or decrease such as growth or decay (including compound interest), the statistical "bell curve," the shape of a hanging cable or a standing arch. "e" also shows up in some problems of probability, some counting problems, and even the study of the distribution of prime numbers. In the field of nondestructive evaluation it is found in formulas such as those used to describe ultrasound attenuation in a material. The sound energy decays as it moves away from the sound source by a factor that is relative to "e." Because it occurs naturally with some frequency in the world, "e" is used as the base of natural logarithms. e is usually defined by the following equation:

Its value is approximately 2.718 and has been calculated to 869,894,101 decimal places by Sebastian Wedeniwski. The number e was first studied by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in the 1720s, although its existence was more or less implied in the work of John Napier, the inventor of logarithms, in 1614. Euler was also the first to use the letter e for it in 1727 (the fact that it is the first letter of his surname is coincidental). As a result, sometimes e is called the Euler Number, the Eulerian Number, or Napier's Constant. It was proven by Euler that "e" is an irrational number, so its decimal expansion never terminates, nor is it ever periodic. An effective way to calculate the value of e is not to use the defining equation above, but to use the following infinite sum of factorials. Factorials are just products of numbers indicated by an exclamation mark. For instance, "four factorial" is written as "4!" and means 1234 = 24. e = 1/0! + 1/1! + 1/2! + 1/3! + 1/4! + ... As an example, here is the computation of e to 22 decimal places: 1/0! = 1/1 1/1! = 1/1 1/2! = 1/2 1/3! = 1/6 1/4! = 1/24 1/5! = 1/120 1/6! = 1/720 1/7! = 1/5040 1/8! = 1/40320 1/9! = 1/362880 1/10! = 1/3628800 1/11! = 1/39916800 1/12! = 1/479001600 1/13! = 1/6227020800 1/14! = 1/87178291200 1/15! = 1/1307674368000 1/16! = 1/20922789887989 1/17! = 1/355687428101759 1/18! = 1/6402373705148490 1/19! = 1/121645101098757000 1/20! = 1/2432901785214670000 = 1.0000000000000000000000000 = 1.0000000000000000000000000 = 0.5000000000000000000000000 = 0.1666666666666666666666667 = 0.0416666666666666666666667 = 0.0083333333333333333333333 = 0.0013888888888888888888889 = 0.0001984126984126984126984 = 0.0000248015873015873015873 = 0.0000027557319223985890653 = 0.0000002755731922398589065 = 0.0000000250521083854417188 = 0.0000000020876756987868099 = 0.0000000001605904383682161 = 0.0000000000114707455977297 = 0.0000000000007647163731820 = 0.0000000000000477947733239 = 0.0000000000000028114572543 = 0.0000000000000001561920697 = 0.0000000000000000082206352 = 0.0000000000000000004110318

1/21! = 1/51091049359062800000 = 0.0000000000000000000195729 1/22! = 1/1123974373384290000000 = 0.0000000000000000000008897 1/23! = 1/25839793281653700000000 = 0.0000000000000000000000387 1/24! = 1/625000000000000000000000 = 0.0000000000000000000000016 1/25! = 1/10000000000000000000000000 = 0.0000000000000000000000001

The sum of the values in the right column is 2.7182818284590452353602875 which is "e."

Algebra
Algebra is a way of expressing mathematical equations using numbers, and letters and symbols called variables. For example, the equation below is used to show that the speed that something travels multiplied by the time that it travels will result in the distance traveled.

In standard algebra, a, b, c, and d tend to signify known variables while x, y, and z tend to signify unknown variables. Also note that a common algebraic shortcut is to eliminate the multiplication sign. Two letters next to each other indicate that they are multiplied together. Algebraic properties There are several standard algebraic properties. The first property is the commutative property. It is important to note that this property only applies to multiplication and addition and not division and subtraction. This property also is only valid if all the terms are multiplied or if all the terms are added. It does not apply to a mix of addition and multiplication. This property states that order does not matter. Reversing the terms does not affect the outcome.

The second property is the associative property. This property also only considers multiplication and addition and only applies if all the terms are multiplied or if all the terms are added. This property deals with when more than two terms are present and states that it does not matter which terms are multiplied or added first.

The next property is the distributive property and deals with parentheses. It is important that unless parentheses are involved, multiplication is always performed first. If there are parentheses, the terms inside the parentheses are dealt with first. If a term is multiplied by some

terms inside parentheses, that term is multiplied by each of the terms inside. If two sets of parentheses are multiplied together, each term inside the first set of parentheses are multiplied by each term inside the second set of parentheses. If there is a plus sign in front of the parentheses, all of the terms inside stay the same sign. If there is a negative sign in front of the parentheses, all of the terms switch signs.

Units When using measurements, units are very important. It is important that all of your units are in the same standard whether they are English measurements or Metric units. If speed is measured in miles per hour, time should be in hours and distance should be in miles. Equations Equations in algebra are statements that two expressions are equal. As long as the same thing is done to each side of the equation, each side will remain equal. For instance, it is possible to add, subtract, multiply or divide terms to each side of the equation. This makes it possible to solve for unknown variables.

There are five rules to solving simple algebraic equations 1. Clear any fractions by multiplying all the terms on both sides of the equation by the denominators 2. Remove all parentheses 3. Transpose all of the terms containing the unknown variable to one side of the equation and all known numbers or variables on the other side of the equation 4. Combine like terms on each side of the equation 5. Divide both sides by whatever coefficient is in front of the unknown variable.

Clear fractions by multiplying both sides by 4b

Transpose by moving all terms with x to the left side and all terms without x to the right side

Combine like terms

Divide both sides by the coefficient in front of x

Problem Solving Algebra can be used to solve word problems like the following: "A man is 3 times as old as his son, but ten years ago he was 5 times the age of his son. What are their ages now?" There is only one unknown variable because once the age of one is found, it can be used to calculate the age of the other. So let the son's age be x making the man's age 3x. Ten years ago, the man's age was (3x-10) and the son's age was (x-10). Since the man's age ten years ago was five times that of his son's age, the following equation is obtained.

Using the steps for solving equations, the equation created from the word problem can be solved

This gives the son's age as 20 years and the man's age as 60 years.

Geometry

Geometry is the branch of mathematics that that deals with points, lines, planes, and solid bodies and examines their properties, measurements and mutual relationships in spaces. Shapes Shapes are said to have dimension. One dimensional shapes are called lines and two dimensional shapes are flat shapes like circles and squares. Three dimensional shapes are shapes with depth to them like cubes and spheres. Polygons are a type of two dimensional shapes. Polygons are closed figures with straight edges of three or more edges or sides. Examples of polygons are triangles, squares, pentagons, and octagons. Triangles have 3 sides, squares have 4, pentagons have 5 and octagons have 8. A figure or shape is not considered a polygon if it has rounded sides or if its sides intersects at any place other than at the ends of each side. Therefore a circle is not a polygon and an hourglass shape is not a polygon. Instead, it is two polygons, two triangles. Sometimes though a circle is considered to be a polygon with an infinite number of sides.

Polygons

Non Polygons

A regular polygon is a polygon where all of the sides and angles are the same. Therefore, a square is a regular polygon with four sides and a rectangle is not. The sum of the angles in a polygon of n sides is 180 x (n-2). The triangle, a type of polygon has 3 special types. An equilateral triangle is a regular polygon. It has all the same sides and the same angles. An isosceles triangle has two equal sides and two equal angles. A scalene triangle has all different sides and angles.

Equilateral

Isosceles

Scalene

Another type of triangle which can be either isosceles or scalene is a right triangle. A right triangle is a triangle where one of the angles is 90. A right triangle cannot be an equilateral triangle because all of the angles in an equilateral triangle are 60. There are also two other designations of triangles, acute and obtuse. Acute triangles are triangles where all three angles are less than 90. An equilateral triangle is an acute triangle. Obtuse triangles contain one angle that is larger than 90.

Right

Acute

Obtuse

Quadrilaterals are shapes with four sides and internal angles adding up to 360. There are several special types of quadrilaterals. Quadrilaterals with all of their angles equal to 90 are called rectangles. Rectangles with all of their sides equal are called squares. Parallelograms are a kind of quadrilateral with opposite sides equal in length and parallel. Rectangles are considered parallelograms. A rhombus is a parallelogram with all of its sides equal in length. Squares can be considered rhombuses. Trapezoids contain one pair of parallel sides of unequal length.

Rectangle

Square

Parallelogram

Rhombus

Trapezoid

Shapes have certain measurable properties. Aside from angles and side length which have already been discussed, there is also area and perimeter. Area is the grayed portion in each of the figures above. The perimeter is the length of all of the sides added. The perimeter of a circle is also called the circumference. The circumference of a circle is equal to times the diameter of the circle. The equations for the area for the main types of shapes can be seen below.

Three dimensional shapes have measurable properties as well. Instead of area and perimeter, there is volume and surface area. For shapes with no rounded surfaces, only flat sides, the surface area is the sum of each face of the shape. The surface area of rounded shapes is slightly more complicated. The surface areas of a sphere, a cone, and a cylinder can be found in the following table.

Trigonometry
The word "Trigonometry" is derived from two Greek words meaning measurement or solution of triangles. Trigonometry is a branch of mathematics that deals with the ratio between the sides of a right triangle and its angles. Trigonometry is used in surveying to determine heights and distances, in navigation to determine location and distances, and in fields like nondestructive testing for determining things such as the angle for reflection or refraction of an ultrasound wave. There are three principle functions in trigonometry: sine A, cosine A, and tangent A where A is an angle. These are typically abbreviated for use in algebra to: sinA, cosA, and tanA. These terms are defined in terms of a right triangle. SinA is equal to the side opposite of the angle A (side a) divided by the hypotenuse of the triangle (side c). From the right triangle below, it can be seen that the value of angle A is directly linked to the ratio of side a and side c. In other words, if the length of side a is changed (and side c is not changed by the same amount), then angle A must change. When the division of the length of side a by side c is performed, the resulting value is directly related to angle A. The relationship between the decimal value of the ratio of the side and the angular value of angle A can be looked up in trigonometry tables or, as is more common these days, programmed into a scientific calculator. The relationship between angle A and the ratio of any two of the three sides can be determined by using either the Sin, Cos or Tan functions. CosA is equal to the side adjacent to the angle A divided by the hypotenuse and tanA is the sine divided by the cosine and is therefore the side opposite the angle divided by the side adjacent.

Angles can be measured in either radians or degrees. 180 = radians. Trigonomic Properties There are several rules to make trigonometry easier. The first rule is the law of sines. This rule is valid for all triangles and is not restricted to right triangles. The law of sines is shown below.

The second rule is the law of cosines. As for the law of sines, this rule is valid for all triangles regardless of the angles. The law of cosines can be seen below.

For the special case of the right triangle, C = 90 and the third term drops out to give the Pythagorean theorem which does not involve either of the other angles.. The Pythagorean theorem is seen below.

Each triangle has six parts, three sides and three angles. If three of these are known including at least one side, the other three can be calculated using the two laws. Similar Triangles Similar triangles are triangles that have the exact same angles as each other but not necessarily the same side lengths. There are certain rules that can be determined about similar triangles. If you superimpose one triangle on the other so that one of the corners and two of the sides match, it can be seen that the third sides of each triangle are parallel to each other. Another rule important later in determining geometric unsharpness in radiology is the ratio of sides. The ratio of the two sides a is the same as the ratio of the two sides b and is also the same as the two sides c. This is illustrated below.