how to find the lcd of a number?
plz help
http://www.mathsisfun.com/least-common-denominator.html
To find the least common denominator (LCD) of a set of numbers, you need to follow these steps:
1. Identify the prime factors of each number: Start by finding the prime factorization of each number in your set.
2. Determine the highest power of each prime factor: Look at the prime factors you obtained for each number. Identify the highest exponent for each prime factor that appears in the factorization of any of the numbers.
3. Multiply the prime factors with their respective highest powers: Multiply together all the prime factors you obtained in step 2, each raised to its highest power.
4. The result obtained in step 3 is the LCD of the given set of numbers. This value can be used to convert fractions with different denominators into fractions with a common denominator.
Let's go through an example:
Suppose you want to find the LCD of the numbers 12 and 18.
Step 1: Prime factorization
- Prime factorization of 12: 2^2 * 3^1
- Prime factorization of 18: 2^1 * 3^2
Step 2: Highest powers of prime factors
- The highest power of 2 is 2.
- The highest power of 3 is 2.
Step 3: Multiply prime factors with their highest powers
- Multiply 2^2 * 3^2 = 4 * 9 = 36
Hence, the LCD of 12 and 18 is 36.
Remember to apply these steps to each number in a set to obtain the LCD.