3 HN users recommended this explainer3 months2019–2026score 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)
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.
"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.
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.
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.
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