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Infinite fractions and the most irrational number

6 videos recommended on HN
YouTube
3 HN users recommended this explainer3 months2019–2026 score 3
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026

Recommended as a clear, visual explanation of continued fractions and why phi is hardest to approximate by fractions.

Mathologer uses continued fractions to show why the golden ratio is the most irrational number, comparing it with root 2, e and pi and pointing to where this shows up in nature.

“Pretty good Mathologer video about continued fractions” (HN, 2023)

3 recommendations · 2 citations · Explainers · intro

5 Hacker News comments

From the HN archive; up to 20 kept per video, favoring different commenters. Recommendations first.

@rrauenza Oct 2021 Recommends
on HN thread Where transcendental numbers hide in everyday math
I was going to post this Mathologer video ( [this video] ) based on e being "the most irrational number" -- but I misremembered. It's the golden ratio, phi. But its still a really interesting video!
Interesting Mathologer video on the most irrational number.
@jerf Oct 2022 Recommends
on HN thread The Mystery of 355/113 (2010)
"same with golden ratio (repeating 1s)" Mathologer has a good video in which he uses this to justify calling the golden ratio the "most irrational" number because of this expansion: [this video] The video also goes over the details of the pi expansion.
Justifies calling phi most irrational via its continued fraction.
@uoaei Aug 2023 Recommends
on HN thread Decimal to Fraction
Pretty good Mathologer video about continued fractions: [this video] One neat trivium I like to quiz the mathematically-minded on is: what number is the most irrational , i.e., toward which number do rational approximations converge the slowest ? The answer can be determined from continued fractions and is discussed in the video near the end.
Good explanation of continued fractions and most irrational number.

Citations, criticism and jokes

@std_throwaway Aug 2019 Cites it
on HN thread Golden Ratio
The golden ratio is the most irrational number: [this video] This is why it creates some distinctive patterns when applied to circular/spiral shapes.
Explains why the golden ratio is most irrational.
@AceJohnny2 Jan 2026 Cites it
on HN thread Golden Ratio using an equilateral triangle inscribed in a circle
Edit: years of searches and minutes after I post this I found [this video] thanks to using "continued fraction" in my search instead of "infinite series" X( Original: Tangentially, for a few years I've been looking for a Youtube video, I think by Mathologer [1], that explained (geometrically?) how the Golden Ratio was the limit of the continued fraction 1+1/(1+1/(1+1/(...))). Anyone know what I'm talking about? I know Mathologer had a conflict with his editor at one point that may have sown chaos on his channel. [1] [link]
Found the video explaining golden ratio as continued fraction limit.

Video list and Hacker News comment labels from HackerTube (prompted by @karpathy), released under ODC-By 1.0, built on the open-index/hacker-news archive. Hacker News data is provided by Y Combinator; comments remain the work of their authors. Video titles, channel names and thumbnails belong to their creators and are shown via YouTube. HackerTube Watch is an unofficial edition. Data export of 2026-10-31.

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