Question

How do you convert the fraction $\frac{1}{8}$ into a decimal fraction.
(3 Marks)

Answer 1

To convert the fraction $\frac{1}{8}$ into a decimal fraction, follow the steps given below:

Step 1: Check the denominator of the given fraction. If it can be written in the Prime factorization of either 2 or 5, it can be easily converted into a decimal fraction. So, in the given fraction, 8 is the denominator, whose prime factorization is 2 × 2 × 2.
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Step 2: As 10 and 100 are not multiples of 8, we will check with the next power of 10, which is 1000.

Step 3: Now, check whether 1000 is a multiple of 8. And we found that 1000 is the multiple of 8.

Step 4: Now, multiply the numerator and denominator of $\frac{1}{8}$ by 125, and we get the decimal fraction after simplifying it further.
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i.e. $\frac{1}{8}$ = $\frac{(1\times 125)}{(8\times 125}=\frac{125}{1000}$= 0.125
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