Cube root approximation is somewhat of a black art. Some implementations manipulate the exponent bits of the floating-point number; i.e. they arrive at an initial approximation by dividing the exponent by 3. Cubic equations, which are polynomial equations of the third degree (meaning the highest power of the unknown is 3) can always be solved for their three solutions in terms of cube roots and square roots (although simpler expressions only in terms of square roots exist for all three solutions, if at least one of them is a rational number). If two of the solutions are complex numbers, then all three
Nth root group: Find the square root of 152.2756. Find the cube root of 4192 to the nearest hundredth. The principal "n"th root of a positive number can be computed using logarithms. Starting from the equation that defines "r" as an "n"th root of "x", namely formula_80 with "x" positive and therefore its principal root "r" also positive, one takes logarithms of both sides (any base of the logarithm will do) to obtain The root "r" is recovered from this by taking the antilog: For the case in which "x" is negative and "n" is odd, there is one real root "r"