In this explainer, we will learn how to use the properties of operations on cube roots to simplify expressions.
We begin by recalling that, for any two real numbers and , we have that . We can prove this fact by noting that
We can write this formally as follows.
Property: The Product of Cube Roots
For any real numbers and , we have that .
We can use this result in both directions to simplify radical expressions.
First, we can simplify the product of radical expressions. Consider the following example:
Second, we can simplify a cube root that is divisible by a perfect cube by splitting it into a product of cube roots. For example,
By using the second method, we can rewrite the cube root of a non-perfect cube in a simplified form. Consider for an integer ; we can find the greatest perfect cube that divides , for example, . Then, we have that where .
We want the sign of to represent the sign of the number, so we choose our perfect cube to make the same sign as . This gives us the following method for simplifying the cube root of a non-perfect cube.
How To: Simplifying the Cube Root of a Non-Perfect Cube
Given any integer , we write in the form , where is the smallest possible positive integer, by using the following steps:
- Find the greatest perfect cube that divides .
- Choose integer to have the same sign as such that divides and is the greatest perfect cube dividing .
- We then have that .
It is worth noting that we do not immediately need to identify the greatest perfect cube dividing the radicand of the cube root (the number inside the cube root) straight away. This is because we can apply this process multiple times. For example,
Let’s now see an example of applying this process to simplify the cube root of integer values.
Example 1: Expressing a Cube Root in Its Simplest Form
Write each of the following radical expressions in the form , where and are integers and is the smallest possible positive value.
Answer
Part 1
We start by looking for perfect cubes that divide 256. We see that is a factor of 256 since , and we recall that, for any two real numbers and , we have that . Hence,
We might be tempted to stop here; however, we need to be the smallest possible positive value such that no perfect cubes can divide . We see that , so we can apply this process again. We have
By inspection, we can see that there are no more perfect cubes that divide 4, so we cannot simplify further. Hence,
Part 2
We want to apply the same process; however, this time, since the radicand of the cube root is negative, we need to find a negative perfect cube divisor of . We note that . Hence,
By inspection, we can see that there are no more perfect cubes that divide 20, so we cannot simplify further. Hence,
In our next example, we will apply the property of the product of cube roots to simplify a product of radicals.
Example 2: Simplifying the Product of Two Cube Roots
Express in its simplest form.
Answer
We first recall that, for any two real numbers and , we have that . Applying this, we have
We then note that ; hence,
Thus far, we have worked with simplifying the cube roots of integers. However, this result works with the cube roots of any real numbers. An application of this result is to consider the cube root of the quotient of real numbers. We have
We note that . Hence,
Of course, we assume that since we are dividing by . This gives us the following result.
Property: Cube Root of the Quotient of Real Numbers
For any real numbers and , where , we have that .
Now, let’s look at an example of using both properties to simplify an expression involving radicals.
Example 3: Simplifying the Multiplication and Division of Multiple Cube Roots
Simplify .
Answer
We start by noting that none of the radicands are perfect cubes, so we cannot directly evaluate any of the individual radicals. Instead, we will combine the radicals and then simplify. We first recall that, for any real numbers and , we have that . Applying this, we have
We can simplify this expression by prime factoring the radicand of each cube root. We note that and . So,
In our next example, we will see how this process can be used to simplify the difference between the cube roots of integers.
Example 4: Simplifying the Difference of Two Cube Roots with Different Bases
Express in its simplest form.
Answer
We first note that neither radicand of the cube roots is a perfect cube, so we cannot evaluate either term directly. Instead, let’s simplify each term by writing them in the form , where and are integers and is the smallest possible positive integer.
Now, we look for perfect cubes that divide 256; we find that . We can then use the fact that, for any real numbers and , we have that to simplify as follows:
We can simplify this further by noting that . Thus,
Substituting this value into the given expression yields
We then take out a factor of to get
We cannot find a perfect cube divisor of 4, which is greater than 1, so we cannot simplify the radical any further. Hence,
In our next example, we will simplify an expression involving the addition of multiple radical expressions.
Example 5: Simplifying the Addition of Cube Roots
Express in its simplest form.
Answer
We will start by simplifying each term separately; we can do this by using the fact that, for any real numbers and , we have that .
To do this, we check 192 for any perfect cube divisors. We see that 8 is a factor of 192 since . Hence,
We want the radicand of the cube root to be the smallest positive integer possible. We can do this by checking to see if 24 has any perfect cube divisors. We note that . Thus,
Now, 3 has no perfect cube divisors greater than 1, so we cannot simplify this term any further.
Next, we check for any perfect cube divisors. Since this number is negative, we want a negative perfect cube. We note that . Hence,
We want the radicand of the cube root to be the smallest positive integer possible. We can do this by checking to see if 81 has any perfect cube divisors. We note that . Thus,
Finally, we check 375 for any perfect cube divisors. We see that . Thus,
Substituting these values into the given expression yields
We can then take out the shared factor of to get
In our final example, we will evaluate an algebraic expression by using the properties of the cube root.
Example 6: Evaluating an Algebraic Expression Involving Cube Roots
If and , find the value of .
Answer
We start by noting that we cannot directly add these radicals together, so instead, we look to simplify each cube root separately.
We need to identify a perfect cube that divides 375; we see that . Hence, by using the fact that for any real numbers and , we have
Now, we look for a perfect cube that divides 81; we see that . Hence,
We can then substitute and into the expression to get
We can take out the shared factor of to get
Finally, we evaluate the exponent as follows:
In the previous example, we may have been tempted to add and by adding their radicands to get . However, we cannot add radical expressions in this manner. An easy way to see this is to consider . We know that , so
If we added the radicands, then we would get , which is not equal to 4.
In a similar way, we can show that is not the same as . So, we cannot just evaluate the expression by adding the radicands:
Let’s finish by recapping some of the important points from this explainer.
Key Points
- For any two real numbers and , we have that .
- For any two real numbers and , where , we have that .
- If is an integer, we can use these results to write , where is smallest positive integer and has no perfect cube divisors greater than 1. This is called the simplest form of .