1.

1 The Real Number System

The real number system that we are all used to today evolved over time to expand the meaning of
the word, number. We will go over the system in this lesson.
Counting Numbers/Natural Numbers:
Counting numbers are probably the simplest group of numbers there is:
1, 2, 3, 4...
Whole Numbers:
The whole numbers are basically the set of counting numbers, but with zero as well:
0, 1, 2, 3, 4…
Integers:
The integers are basically the set of whole numbers, with the addition of negative numbers:
…-3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3…
Rational Numbers:
After a while people became confused on how to describe things like “half” of a piece of cake or
an “eighth of a whole pizza.” In order to solve this problem, they invented the rational numbers.
The rational numbers are basically what we call fractions. Formally, rational numbers are all
numbers in the form of a/b, where a and b are both integers.
WARNING: The denominator of the rational number can’t be 0! (But the numerator can)
Irrational Numbers:
As time went on, people ran into numbers such as 2 and π. They were confused on how to deal
with these. As a result, they came up with the irrational numbers.
Irrational numbers are numbers that cannot be expressed as a ratio of two integers. As decimals,
they go on infinitely and do not repeat in a pattern.
Examples: 3, π2, 19

The Big Picture:

This diagram shows how the different sets of numbers that were discussed in this lesson overlap
with each other:
Absolute Value or x:
Absolute value is a way to talk about how large a number is regardless of whether it is positive or
negative. Formally, it is a function that tells us how far away a number is from zero.
In short:
-If a number is positive or zero, the number is kept the same
-If a number is negative, the absolute value sign makes it positive
Examples
|8|=8

-42=42

6+(-8)=6-8=-2=2