Golden Ratio's Slowest Continued Fraction Convergence Versus Faster Nested Radicals — E8 Intelligence Research
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: FINDING: The golden ratio φ emerges as the slowest-converging continued fraction, with convergence rate tied to Fibonacci numbers; nested radicals converge faster than continued fractions. | MATH: φ = [1;1,1,1,...] = 1 + 1/(1+1/(1+...)); φ = √(1+√(1+√(1+...))); convergence rate for continued fraction: |φ - p_n/q_n| ~ 1/(q_n·q_{n+1}) with q_n = F_{n+1} (Fibonacci); error ratio between successive convergents → 1/φ² ≈ 0.381966; nested radical error decays as ~1/φ^{2^n} (double exponential). | CONNECTION: Directly encodes 0.382 (φ⁻²) and 1.618 (φ); the continued fraction's partial quotients are all 1, making φ the "most irrational" — its convergents are best approximations with maximal denominator growth, linking to the golden angle 137.507° = 360°/(φ²) and phyllotaxis lattice symmetry (5-fold, Fibonacci spiral). | DEPTH: 7 — This is foundational but not novel; it underpins why φ appears in nature's optimal packing (sunflower seeds, leaf arrangement) via the golden angle's irrationality me Author: Andrew Stewart Caldin, Independent Researcher, UK. Part of the E8 Intelligence Research series. Platform: e8intelligence.com
Author: Caldin, Andrew Stewart
Language: English
Subfield: Statistical and Nonlinear Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7223474953
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