Simplify $\sqrt{6-\sqrt{20}}$ My first try was to set the whole expression equal to $a$ and square both sides. $$\sqrt{6-\sqrt{20}}=a \Longleftrightarrow a^2=6-\sqrt{20}=6-\sqrt{4\cdot5}=6-2\sqrt{5}.$$
Multiplying by conjugate I get $$a^2=\frac{(6-2\sqrt{5})(6+2\sqrt{5})}{6+2\sqrt{5}}=\frac{16}{2+\sqrt{5}}.$$
But I still end up with an ugly radical expression.

Here's a useful formula for this kind of problems:
$$\sqrt{a \pm \sqrt{b}} = \sqrt{\frac{a + \sqrt{a^2 - b}}{2}} \pm \sqrt{\frac{a - \sqrt{a^2 - b}}{2}}$$
where we have $a,b \ge 0$ and $a^2 > b$
