To reduce a fraction to the lowest terms equivalent: divide the numerator and denominator by their greatest common factor, GCF
To calculate the greatest common factor, GCF:
- 1. Factor the numerator and the denominator (into prime factors), build their prime factorizations.
- 2. Multiply all their common prime factors, taken by the lowest exponents.
1. Factor the numerator and the denominator:
To factor a number (into prime factors) - or, in other words, to break it down to prime factors - or, in other words, to build its prime factorization: find the prime numbers that multiply together to get that number.
The prime factorizations:
Written with exponents:
2,800,008 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 3 × 29 × 149 = 23 × 34 × 29 × 149
2,800,008 is a composite number.
Written with exponents:
12,000,014 = 2 × 13 × 13 × 13 × 2,731 = 2 × 133 × 2,731
12,000,014 is a composite number.
2,800,008/12,000,014 =
(2,800,008 ÷ 2) / (12,000,014 ÷ 2) =
1,400,004/6,000,007
Yet another method to reduce the fraction
To reduce a fraction without calculating the GCF: factor its numerator and denominator, then all the common prime factors are easily identified and crossed out.
2,800,008/12,000,014 =
(23 × 34 × 29 × 149)/(2 × 133 × 2,731) =
((23 × 34 × 29 × 149) ÷ 2) / ((2 × 133 × 2,731) ÷ 2) =
(22 × 34 × 29 × 149)/(133 × 2,731) =
1,400,004/6,000,007
As a decimal number:
Simply divide the numerator by the denominator, without a remainder, as shown below:
1,400,004/6,000,007 =
1,400,004 ÷ 6,000,007 =
0.233333727777 ≈
0.23