Final answer:
The decimal 3.18 written as a rational number is 159/50. This is obtained by converting the decimal to a fraction (318/100) and simplifying by dividing both numerator and denominator by their greatest common divisor of 2.
Step-by-step explanation:
To express the decimal number 3.18 as a rational number, one must first understand that a rational number is any number that can be expressed as the quotient or fraction of two integers. The decimal 3.18 has two decimal places, so to convert it into a fraction, we can write it over 100 and simplify if necessary.
Here is the step-by-step process:
- Write the decimal as a fraction with a denominator of 100: 3.18 = 318/100.
- Simplify the fraction by finding the greatest common divisor (GCD) of the numerator and the denominator. In this case, the GCD of 318 and 100 is 2.
- Divide both the numerator and the denominator by the GCD: 318/2 = 159 and 100/2 = 50.
- Therefore, the simplified rational number is 159/50.
So, the decimal 3.18 written as a rational is 159/50.