Re: [Mid] A lesson in Algorism

In a message dated 6/11/99 9:03:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
charles@eecs.umich.edu writes:

<<
 Hmm, sorry Duke Andrew, best get out your mathematics texts again. You
 will not that I started out by saying:
 
>> Anyway, let x = 0.99999... (where ... means the nines continue
>> forever).
  >>

        Be that as it may, you also multiplied 0.99999... by a factor of 10.
It is that final "0" in the number 10 and the product of the multiplication
that is being deliberately ignored. When you perform some math processes, you
can actually curtail an infinite series and make it a finite, albeit long,
series of digits. Multiplying by any factor ending in a zero or series of
zeros before the decimal marker will frequently allow one to create the
illusion that something is lost or gained by a mathematical exercise.
        
        You know that this is the real truth of the matter. (Heh, durned
kids!)

                                                                                
                                        Andrew

From: DukeAndrew@aol.com
+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+ to unsubscribe, send a message to
`~-, ,-~`~-, ,-~`~-, ,-~`~-, ,-~` majordomo@midrealm.org with
. | | | | | | | | 'unsubscribe sca-middle' as its body.
Received on Fri Jun 11 14:21:05 1999