Surds and index laws

What you'll learn

1. 1

   A surd is a square root that can't be simplified to a whole number, like √2 or √3. Imagine a square with area 2 — the side length is √2, and you can't write it as a neat decimal.

2. 2

   Which of these is a surd?

3. 3

   Let's simplify √12 using index laws. We'll break it into smaller parts.

4. 4

   Drag the numbers to simplify √18 — think 18 = 9 × 2.

5. 5

   What is √18 simplified?

6. 6

   Now let's multiply surds: √3 × √12. Use the rule √a × √b = √(a × b).

7. 7

   What is √2 × √8?