Actually, I believe it's the other way around. Ratio, "I think" (latin,
rere), is the origin of the word "ratio", meaning that a number which can
be expressed as the ratio between two whole numbers is "rational", subject
to reason, whereas a surd or "irrational number" such as the square root of
two, is not rational. (The ratio of the circumference to the diameter of a
circle is "transcendental").
Andy
At 01:41 PM 26/12/2003 -0500, you wrote:
>Dear Mike-
>Thanks for an inspirational note. Rational comes also from "ratio": weighing
>different parts and assigning their relative values.
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