what is the difference between a rational number and an integer?
An integer is a whole number, positive or negative.
A rational number is a number which can be expressed as a fraction between two whole numbers.
Every integer is a rational number, because every integer can be expressed as a fraction between itself and 1, both whole numbers.
Integers are positive and negative whole numbers.
The set of rational numbers are all numbers that can be
expressed as a fraction or ratio of the form a/b, where b ≠ 0
The set of rational numbers contains the set of integers since
every integer can be expressed as a fraction.
e.g.
5 = 5/1 or 10/2 or ...
thanks Reiny and Bosnian
A rational number is a number that can be expressed as the ratio of two integers, where the denominator is not zero. In other words, it can be written in the form p/q, where p and q are integers and q is not equal to zero. Examples of rational numbers are -1/2, 3/4, 2/1, and 0.
On the other hand, an integer is a whole number, either positive, negative, or zero, without any fractional or decimal parts. Integers are commonly represented by the set of numbers {..., -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, ...}. Examples of integers are -3, 0, and 4.
The key difference between rational numbers and integers is that rational numbers include both integers and fractions, whereas integers do not include any fractions or decimal parts.
To determine whether a number is a rational number or an integer, you need to check if it can be expressed as a fraction (ratio of two integers). If it can be expressed as a fraction, then it is a rational number. If it cannot be expressed as a fraction, then it is an integer.