Exercise 1027Number theory › IrrationalityOlympiadAdded 3 Nov 2026
Uncountability of irrationals
#uncountability#Cantor#irrationals
Statement
Show that the set of irrationals is uncountable.
Hint
is countable; is uncountable; remove a countable set.
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Solution
countable. List rationals as with a diagonal enumeration.
uncountable. Cantor's diagonal argument on decimal expansions.
Irrationals. is uncountable: if it were countable, would be countable union of two countable sets, contradiction.
Conclusion. Almost all real numbers are irrational (in the measure-theoretic sense, the irrationals have full measure).