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1 Number and
calculation

E
Getting started
1 Write as a number:
a 122 b 81 c 53 d 3
64
2

4
2 = 256
8

PL
Use this fact to work out the value of
a 29 b 27
Here is a multiplication: 155 × 152
a Write the correct answer from this list: 157  1510  307  3010
b Write the answer to 155 ÷ 152 in index form.
Look at these numbers: 4  −4.5  3000  17 3    225
a Which of these numbers are integers?
20
M
b Which of these numbers are rational numbers?
5 Write one million as a power of 10.
SA

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1 Number and calculation

1, 4, 9 and 16 are the first four square numbers. They have integer
square roots.
12 = 1 and 1 = 1 22 = 4 and 4 = 2
32 = 9 and 9 = 3 42 = 16 and 16 = 4

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What about 2 ? Is there a rational number n for which n2 = 2?
Remember that you can write a rational number as a fraction.

( )
2
1
1
= 1 1 × 1 1 = 2 1 so 2 must be a little less than 1 1 .
2

A closer answer
2 2 4

is 1 5
12

PL
because

An even closer answer is 1 169 because 1 169

408
( )
15
12
2
= 2 1 .
144

( )
408
2

Do you think you can find a fraction which gives an answer of exactly 2
when you square it?
A calculator gives the answer 2 = 1.414213562. This is a rational
number because you can write it as a fraction: 1 414213562 .
=2 1
2

166464
.
M
1000000000
Is 1.414213562 × 1.414213562 exactly 2?
In this unit, you will look at numbers such as 2 .

1.1 Irrational numbers

SA

In this section you will … Key words

• learn about the difference between rational numbers and irrational number
irrational numbers rational number
• use your knowledge of square numbers to estimate surd
square roots
• use your knowledge of cube numbers to estimate
cube roots.

10
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1.1 Irrational numbers

Integers are whole numbers. For example, 13, −26 and 100 004 are integers.
Tip
You can write rational numbers as fractions. For example, 9 3 , −3 4 and
4 15 The set of rational
18 5 are rational numbers.
11 numbers includes
You can write any fraction as a decimal. integers.

9 3 = 9.75  −3 4 = −3.26666666...  18 5 = 18.4545454...

4 15 11
Tip
The fraction either terminates (for example, 9.75) or it has recurring
digits (for example, −3.266666666666… continues with 6s and Square roots of
18.45454545454… continues with the digits 4 and 5 repeating).

E
negative numbers
There are many square roots and cube roots that you cannot write do not belong to
as fractions. When you write these fractions as decimals, they do not the set of rational
terminate and there is no recurring pattern. For example, a calculator or irrational
gives the answer 7 = 2.645751... The calculator answer is not exact. The numbers. You

3
7 is not a rational number.

PL
decimal does not terminate and there is no recurring pattern. Therefore,

Numbers that are not rational are called irrational numbers. 7 , 23,
10 and 3 45 are irrational numbers. Irrational numbers that are square
roots or cube roots are called surds.
There are also numbers that are irrational but are not square roots or
cube roots. One of these irrational numbers is called pi, which is the
Greek letter π. Your calculator will tell you that π = 3.14159… You will
will learn more
about these
numbers if you
continue to study
mathematics to a
higher level.
M
meet π later in the course.

Worked example 1.1

Do not use a calculator for this question.
a Show that 90 is between 9 and 10.
SA

b N is an integer and 3 90 is between N and N + 1. Find the value of N.

Answer
a 92 = 81 and 102 = 100
81 < 90 < 100 This means 90 is between 81 and 100.
So 81 < 90 < 100
And so 9 < 90 < 10
b 43 = 64 and 53 = 125
64 < 90 < 125 and so
3
64 < 3 90 < 3 125
So 4 < 3 90 < 5 and N = 4

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1 Number and calculation

Exercise 1.1
1 Write whether each of these numbers is an integer or an irrational
number. Explain how you know.
a 9 b 19 c 39 d 49 e 99
2 a Write the rational numbers in this list.
1  7 5   −38   160   − 2.25   − 35
12
b Write the irrational numbers in this list.
0.3333…  −16   200    1.21   23    3 343
8

E
3 Write whether each of these numbers is an integer or a surd.
Explain how you know.
a 100 b 3
100 c 1000
d 3
1000 e 10 000 f 3 10 000

5
a
c
Find
a
2+ 2
4+ 3 4 d
b

PL
Is each of these numbers rational or irrational? Give a reason for each
answer.

3
2+2
4+4

two irrational numbers that add up to 0

b two irrational numbers that add up to 2.
M
Think like a mathematician
6 a Use a calculator to find
i 8× 2 ii 3 × 12 iii 20 × 5 iv 2 × 18
b What do you notice about your answers?
c Find another multiplication similar to the multiplications in part a.
SA

d Find similar multiplications using cube roots instead of square roots.

7 Without using a calculator, show that

a 7 < 55 < 8 b 4 < 3 100 < 5
8 Without using a calculator, find an irrational number between
a 4 and 5 b 12 and 13.
9 Without using a calculator, estimate
a 190 to the nearest integer
b 3
190 to the nearest integer.

12
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1.1 Irrational numbers

10 a Use a calculator to find

i ( 2 + 1) × ( 2 −1) ii ( 3 + 1) × ( 3 − 1) iii ( 4 + 1) × ( 4 − 1)
b Continue the pattern of the multiplications in part a.
c Generalise the results to find ( N + 1) × ( N − 1) where N is a positive integer.
d Check your generalisation with further examples.
11 Here is a decimal: 5.020 020 002 000 020 000 020 000 002…
Arun says:

E
There is a regular
pattern: one zero, then
two zeros, then three
zeros, and so on. This
is a rational number.

a
b

PL
Is Arun correct? Give a reason for your answer.
Compare your answer with a partner’s. Do you agree? If not, who is correct?

In this exercise, you have looked at the properties of rational and

irrational numbers.
a Are the following statements true or false?
M
i The sum of two integers is always an integer.
ii The sum of two rational numbers is always a rational
number.
iii The sum of two irrational numbers is always an irrational
number.
SA

b Here is a calculator answer: 3.646 153 846

The answer is rounded to 9 decimal places.
Can you decide whether the number is rational or irrational?

Summary checklist
I can use square numbers and cube numbers to estimate square roots and
cube roots.
I can say whether the square root or the cube root of a positive integer
is rational or irrational.

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1 Number and calculation

1.2 Standard form

In this section you will … Key words
• learn to write large and small numbers in standard form. scientific notation
standard form
Look at these numbers:
4.67 × 10 = 46.7
Tip

E
4.67 × 10 2 = 467
4.67 × 103 = 4670 4.67 × 102 is the
same as
4.67 × 106 = 4 670 000 4.67 × 100 or
You can use powers of 10 in this way to write large numbers. For 4.67 × 10 × 10

powers of 10. For example:

4.67 ×10 −1 = 0.467
4.67 ×10 −2 = 0.0467
PL
example, the average distance to the Sun is 149 600 000 km. You can
write this as 1.496 × 108 km. This is called standard form. You write a
number in standard form as a × 10n where 1 ⩽ a < 10 and n is an integer.
You can write small numbers in a similar way, using negative integer

Tip
Think of 4.67 × 10−1
as 4.67 ÷ 10
M
4.67 ×10 −3 = 0.004 67
4.67 ×10 −6 = 0.000 004 67
Small numbers occur often in science. For example, the time for light to Tip
travel 5 metres is 0.000 000 017 seconds. In standard form, you can write
Standard form is
this as 1.7 ×10 −8 seconds.
also sometimes
SA

called scientific
Worked example 1.2 notation.
Write these numbers in standard form.
a 256 million    b 25.6 billion    c 0.000 025 6

Answer Tip
a 1 million = 1 000 000 or 106 Notice that in
So 256 million = 256 000 000 = 2.56 × 108 every case the
decimal point
b 1 billion = 1 000 000 000 or 109 is placed after
So 25.6 billion = 25 600 000 000 = 2.56 × 1010 the 2, the first
c 0.000 025 6 = 2.56 × 10−5 non-zero digit.

14
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 We are working with Cambridge Assessment International Education towards endorsement of this title.

1.2 Standard form

Exercise 1.2
1 Write these numbers in standard form.
a 300 000 b 320 000
c 328 000 d 328 710
2 Write these numbers in standard form.
a 63 000 000 b 488 000 000
c 3 040 000 d 520 000 000 000
3 These numbers are in standard form. Write each number in full.

E
a 5.4 × 103 b 1.41 × 106
c 2.337 × 1010 d 8.725 × 107
4 Here are the distances of some planets from the Sun.
Write each distance in standard form.

a
b
Planet

Area (km2)
Mercury
Distance (km) 57 900 000

China PL
Here are the areas of four countries.
Country
Mars
227 900 000

Indonesia Russia
6

Which country has the largest area?

Which country has the smallest area?
7
Uranus
2 870 000 000

Kazakhstan
9.6 × 10 1.9 × 10 1.7 × 10 2.7 × 106
6
M
c Copy and complete this sentence with a whole number:
The largest country is approximately … times larger than the
smallest country.
6 Write these numbers in standard form.
a 0.000 007 b 0.000 812
SA

c 0.000 066 91 d 0.000 000 205

7 These numbers are in standard form. Write each number in full.
a 1.5 × 10−3 b 1.234 × 10−5
c 7.9 × 10−8 d 9.003 × 10−4
8 The mass of an electron is 9.11 × 10−31 kg.
This is 0.000…911 kg.
a How many zeros are there between the decimal point and the 9?
b Work out the mass of 1 million electrons.
Give the answer in kilograms in standard form.

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1 Number and calculation

9 Here are four numbers:

w = 9.81 × 10−5 x = 2.8 × 10−4 y = 9.091 × 10−5 z = 4 × 10−4
a Which number is the largest?
b Which number is the smallest?
10 a Explain why the number 65 × 104 is not in standard form.
b Write 65 × 104 in standard form.
c Write 48.3 × 106 in standard form.
11 Write these numbers in standard form.

E
a 15 × 10−3 b 27.3 × 10−4 c 50 × 10−9
12 Do these additions. Write the answers in standard form.
a 2.5 × 106 + 3.6 × 106 b 4.6 × 105 + 1.57 × 105 c 9.2 × 104 + 8.3 × 104
13 Do these additions. Write the answers in standard form.

14
a
c
4.5 × 10−6 + 3.1 × 10−6
9 × 10−8 + 7 × 10−8

form.
i 7 × 105
iii 4.1 × 10−5
PL
b Generalise your results from part a.
c
b 5.12 × 10−5 + 2.9 × 10−5

a Multiply these numbers by 10. Give each answer in standard

ii 3.4 × 106
iv 1.37 × 10−4

Describe how to multiply or divide a number in standard

M
form by 1000.

What are the advantages of writing numbers in standard form?

SA

Summary checklist
I can write large and small numbers in standard form.

16
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 We are working with Cambridge Assessment International Education towards endorsement of this title.

1.3 Indices

1.3 Indices
In this section you will …
• use positive, negative and zero indices
• use index laws for multiplication and division.

This table shows powers of 3.

E
32 33 34 35 36 Tip
9 27 81 243 729
The index is the
When you move one column to the right, the index increases by 1 and small red number.
the number multiplies by 3.
9 × 3 = 27

1
81
27 × 3 = 81 81 × 3 = 243, and so on.

1
27
3−2
1
9
3−1
1
3
PL
When you move one column to the left, the index decreases by 1 and the
number divides by 3. You can use this fact to extend the table to the left:

3−4 3−3 30

1
31

3
32

9
33

27
34

81
35

243
36

729
M
9 ÷ 3 = 3   3 ÷ 3 = 1   1 ÷ 3 = 1    1 ÷ 3 = 1  1 ÷ 3 = 1 , and so on. Tip
3 3 9 9 27
You can see from the table that 3 = 3 and 3 = 1. 1 0
30 = 1 seems
Also: 3−1 = 1   
3−2 = 12   
3−3 = 13 , and so on. strange but it fits
3 3 3
the pattern.
In general, if n is a positive integer then 3− n = 1n . These results are not
SA

3
only true for powers of 3. They apply to any positive integer.
For example: 5−2 = 12 = 1   
8−3 = 13 = 1   60 = 1
5 25 8 512
In general, if a and n are positive integers then a0 = 1 and a − n = 1n .
a

Exercise 1.3
1 Write each number as a fraction.
a 4−1 b 2−3 c 9−2
d 6 −3
e 10 −4
f 2−5
2 Here are five numbers: 2−4 3−3 4−2 5−1 60
List the numbers in order of size, smallest first.

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1 Number and calculation

3 Write these numbers as powers of 2.

1 1
a b c 64
2 4
1
d e 1 f 8−1
64
4 Write each number as a power of 10.
a 100 b 1000 c 1
d 0.1 e 0.001 f 0.000 001
5 Write 1
64
a as a power of 64 b as a power of 8

E
c as a power of 4 d as a power of 2.
1
6 a Write as a power of a positive integer.
81
b How many different ways can you write the answer to part a?
7 When x = 6, find the value of

9
a

a
x2

m=9
−2
b x−2
Write m−2 as a fraction when
a b m = 15
PL
y = x + x and x is a positive number.
2

Write y as a mixed number when

i x=1 ii
b Find the value of x when
x=2
c

c
x0

m=1
d x−3

d m = 20

iii x = 3
M
i y = 25.04 ii y = 100.01
10 a Write the answer to each multiplication as a power of 3.
i 32 × 33 ii 34 × 35
iii 36 × 34 iv 3 × 35
b In part a you used the rule 3a × 3b = 3a + b when the indices are
positive integers.
SA

In the following multiplications, a or b can be negative

integers.
Show that the rule still gives the correct answers.
Tip
i 32 × 3−1 ii 3−2 × 3
iii 33 × 3−1 iv 3−1 × 3−1 Write out the
v 3−2 × 3−1 numbers and
multiply.
c Write two examples of your own to show that the rule works.
d Give your work to a partner to check.
11 Write the answer to each multiplication as a power of 5.
a 5 4 × 52 b 54 × 5 −2
c 5 −4 × 52 d 5 −4 × 5 −2

18
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1.3 Indices

12 Write the answer to each multiplication as a single power.

a 6 −3 × 62 b 75 × 7 −2
c 11−4 ×11−6 d 4 −6 × 42
13 Find the value of x in each case.
a 25 × 2 x = 2 9 b 3x × 3−2 = 34
c 4 x × 4 −3 = 4 −5 d 12 −3 ×12 x = 12 2

Think like a mathematician

E
14 a Write as a single power:
i 25 ÷ 23 ii 45 ÷ 42 iii 56 ÷ 55 iv 210 ÷ 27
b The rule for part a is that na ÷ nb = na −b when the indices a and b are positive
integers.

a
c
c

6 2 ÷ 65
152 ÷156
PL
Write some examples to show that this rule also works for indices that are
negative integers.
Give your examples to a partner to check.

15 Write the answer to each division as a single power.

b 93 ÷ 94
d 103 ÷108
16 Write the answer to each division as a single power.
M
a 22 ÷ 2 −3 b 85 ÷ 8−2
c 5 −4 ÷ 52 d 12 −3 ÷12 −5
17 Write down
a 82 as a power of 2 b 8−2 as a power of 2
c 272 as a power of 3 d 27−2 as a power of 3
SA

e 272 as a power of 9 f 27−2 as a power of 9.

Summary checklist
I can understand positive, negative and zero indices.
I can use the addition rule for indices to multiply powers of the same number.
I can use the subtraction rule for indices to divide powers of the same number.

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1 Number and calculation

Check your progress

1 Write whether each number is rational or irrational.
a 4 b 5 c 6.25
d 62.5 e 625
2 Write whether each number is rational or irrational. Give a reason for each answer.
a 32 + 42 b 9+ 7
Without using a calculator, find an integer n such that n < 3 50 < n + 1.

E
3
4 Write each number in standard form.
a 86 000 000 000 b 0.000 006 45
5 Write these numbers in order of size, smallest first.
A = 9 × 10−4 B = 6 × 10−3 C = 8 × 10−5 D = 7.5 × 10−4
6

8
a
c
7−2

125

68 × 6 −3
4 2 ÷ 48
PL
Write each number as a fraction.
a b 3−4
Write each number as a power of 5.
a b 1

b 12 −2 ×12 −3
d 15 −4 ÷15 −6
c

c
Write the answer to each calculation as the power of a single number.
2−7

0.04
M
SA

20
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