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In mathematics, a negative number is the opposite of a positive real number. [1] Equivalently, a negative number is a real number that is less than zero. Negative numbers are often used to represent the magnitude of a loss or deficiency. A debt that is owed may be thought of as a negative asset.
Negative numbers: Real numbers that are less than zero. Because zero itself has no sign, neither the positive numbers nor the negative numbers include zero. When zero is a possibility, the following terms are often used: Non-negative numbers: Real numbers that are greater than or equal to zero. Thus a non-negative number is either zero or positive.
Every real number corresponds to a point on the number line. The following paragraph will focus primarily on positive real numbers. The treatment of negative real numbers is according to the general rules of arithmetic and their denotation is simply prefixing the corresponding positive numeral by a minus sign, e.g. −123.456.
In elementary mathematics, the additive inverse is often referred to as the opposite number, [3] [4] or its negative. [5] The unary operation of arithmetic negation [6] is closely related to subtraction [7] and is important in solving algebraic equations. [8] Not all sets where addition is defined have an additive inverse, such as the natural ...
The negative hypergeometric distribution, a distribution which describes the number of attempts needed to get the nth success in a series of Yes/No experiments without replacement. The Poisson binomial distribution, which describes the number of successes in a series of independent Yes/No experiments with different success probabilities.
The plus and minus symbols are used to show the sign of a number. In mathematics, the sign of a real number is its property of being either positive, negative, or 0.Depending on local conventions, zero may be considered as having its own unique sign, having no sign, or having both positive and negative sign.
The non-negative real numbers can be noted but one often sees this set noted + {}. [25] In French mathematics, the positive real numbers and negative real numbers commonly include zero, and these sets are noted respectively + and . [26] In this understanding, the respective sets without zero are called strictly positive real numbers and ...
The whole numbers were synonymous with the integers up until the early 1950s. [23] [24] [25] In the late 1950s, as part of the New Math movement, [26] American elementary school teachers began teaching that whole numbers referred to the natural numbers, excluding negative numbers, while integer included the negative numbers.