The integer number line
A visual model for ordering and operating on integers.
An integer is any whole number, including zero and its negatives:
On a horizontal number line, positives go RIGHT of 0 and negatives go LEFT. Two integers can always be compared by their position on the line: the further right, the larger.
For example, because sits to the LEFT of . Be careful β although for positives, the order REVERSES for the negatives: .
The absolute value of an integer is its distance from 0 (always positive):
- Larger negatives sit further LEFT (e.g. ).
- Absolute value is always positive.
- Zero is the only integer that is neither positive nor negative.