Rationalize
$\dfrac{1}{\sqrt[3]{p^2}+\sqrt[3]{pq}+\sqrt[3]{q^2}}.$
How would I go about doing this without wading through lots of algebra? Is there a trick similar to how you can multiply by $\dfrac{\sqrt a-\sqrt b}{\sqrt a-\sqrt b}$ with square roots?
Thanks in advance!
$\endgroup$ 11 Answer
$\begingroup$Hint: Multiply both numerator and denominator by $\sqrt[3]{p} - \sqrt[3]{q}$. This comes from the well-known formula: $a^3-b^3=(a-b)(a^2+ab+b^2)$
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