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An illustration of the complex plane. The imaginary numbers are on the vertical coordinate axis. Although the Greek mathematician and engineer Heron of Alexandria is noted as the first to present a calculation involving the square root of a negative number, [6] [7] it was Rafael Bombelli who first set down the rules for multiplication of complex numbers in 1572.
5⋅5, or 5 2 (5 squared), can be shown graphically using a square. Each block represents one unit, 1⋅1, and the entire square represents 5⋅5, or the area of the square. In mathematics, a square is the result of multiplying a number by itself. The verb "to square" is used to denote this operation.
Square roots of negative numbers are called imaginary because in early-modern mathematics, only what are now called real numbers, obtainable by physical measurements or basic arithmetic, were considered to be numbers at all – even negative numbers were treated with skepticism – so the square root of a negative number was previously considered undefined or nonsensical.
This formula distinguishes the complex number i from any real number, since the square of any (negative or positive) real number is always a non-negative real number. With this definition of multiplication and addition, familiar rules for the arithmetic of rational or real numbers continue to hold for complex numbers.
In mathematics, a quadratic equation (from Latin quadratus 'square') is an equation that can be rearranged in standard form as [1] + + =, where the variable x represents an unknown number, and a, b, and c represent known numbers, where a ≠ 0. (If a = 0 and b ≠ 0 then the equation is linear, not quadratic.)
In mathematics, Euler's identity [note 1] (also known as Euler's equation) is the equality + = where . is Euler's number, the base of natural logarithms, is the imaginary unit, which by definition satisfies =, and
This definition of exponentiation with negative exponents is the only one that allows extending the identity + = to negative exponents (consider the case =). The same definition applies to invertible elements in a multiplicative monoid , that is, an algebraic structure , with an associative multiplication and a multiplicative identity denoted 1 ...
This thermometer is indicating a negative Fahrenheit temperature (−4 °F). 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.