Denesting radicals is a deep problem. There are subtle issues when you are using symbols and solving equations. If I remember correctly, one of the issues is that you can't decide if something is square-free if it contains certain kinds of radicals (don't depend on my memory though).
Simplification of radicals usually involves algebraic field extensions but (again, if I remember correctly) the issue is independence. Doing a field extension with sqrt(2) and sqrt(6) causes problems. Plus the question arises whether you're working over real or complex. We had these discussions in the last century (around 1980) and I don't remember all the details except to say that it is MUCH harder and more subtle than it looks. The person I'd ask is either Barry Trager or James Davenport. Tim _______________________________________________ Axiom-developer mailing list [email protected] https://lists.nongnu.org/mailman/listinfo/axiom-developer
