Reciprocal of 142,857/Mistake

Source Work

1986: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers:

The Dictionary

$142,857$

1997: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers (2nd ed.):

The Dictionary

$142,857$

Mistake

Because $142,857 \times 7 = 999,999$, the decimal period of $1 / 7$ is $142857$ and the decimal period of $1 / 142,857$ is $7$. In fact $1 / 142,857 = 0.000007 \, 000007 \, 000007 \, \ldots$

Correction

Careful counting reveals that the period is in fact $6$, not $7$.

Sources

• 1986: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers ... (previous) ... (next): $142,857$
• 1997: David Wells: Curious and Interesting Numbers (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): $142,857$