Review of Introductory Mathematics
FRACTIONS
Then,
The general method of adding or subtracting fractions which do not have a common denominator
is to convert the individual fractions to equivalent fractions with a common denominator. These
equally sized segments can then be added or subtracted.
The simplest method to calculate a common denominator is to multiply the denominators. This
is obtained if each fraction is multiplied top and bottom by the denominator of the other fraction
(and thus by one, giving an equivalent fraction).
1
3
8
6
1
3
6
6
8
6
3
3
6
18
24
18
30
18
For more than two fractions, each fraction is multiplied top and bottom by each of the other
denominators. This method works for simple or small fractions. If the denominators are large
or many fractions are to be added, this method is cumbersome.
Rev. 0
Page 29
MA-01
