alternative proof that $\sqrt{2}$ is irrational

Following is a proof that $\sqrt{2}$ is irrational.

The polynomial $x^2-2$ is irreducible over $\mathbb{Z}$ by Eisenstein’s criterion with $p=2$. Thus, $x^2-2$ is irreducible over $\mathbb{Q}$ by Gauss’s lemma (http://planetmath.org/GausssLemmaII). Therefore, $x^2-2$ does not have any roots in $\mathbb{Q}$. Since $\sqrt{2}$ is a root of $x^2-2$, it must be irrational.

This method generalizes to show that any number of the form $\sqrt[r]{n}$ is not rational, where $r\in \mathbb{Z}$ with $r>1$ and $n\in \mathbb{Z}$ such that there exists a prime $p$ dividing $n$ with $p^2$ not dividing $n$.

Title	alternative proof that $\sqrt{2}$ is irrational
Canonical name	AlternativeProofThatsqrt2IsIrrational
Date of creation	2013-03-22 16:55:15
Last modified on	2013-03-22 16:55:15
Owner	Wkbj79 (1863)
Last modified by	Wkbj79 (1863)
Numerical id	8
Author	Wkbj79 (1863)
Entry type	Proof
Classification	msc 11J72
Classification	msc 12E05
Classification	msc 11J82
Classification	msc 13A05
Related topic	Irrational
Related topic	EisensteinCriterion
Related topic	GausssLemmaII