A few little equations

[Narf the Mouse]

A = B = Infinity

A - B = ?



A = B * 2
B = Infinity

A - B = ?



A = B / 2
B = Infinity

A - B = ?

[Punstarr]

*Hisses*

Math!!!!

*Holds up a crucifix*

[SpotWeld]

Oh it's all infinity, just different kinds of inifinite sets.

[Narf the Mouse]

I have had no formal training beyond high-school level math; while I can be quite intelligent, please don't use 'buzzwords'; I don't know what they mean.

For myself, I'd quantify the infinities as ratios, so we have for the first A = 1/1, B = 1/1. Result is either zero or a zeroed infinity, if possible. Seeing as infinity is a mathematical concept but not a (Traditional) numerical one, that may be possible.

For the second, A = 1/1, B = 1/1...And A/B = 2/1. I can't quite verbalize why, but it makes sense. So, ? = 1/1, ?/A = 1/1, ?/B = 2/1.

My brain is frying due to it being rather late (I got up rather early), so I'll stop there.

[One post wonder]

I will use I as a variable for infinity here... As infinity cannot be quantified, we cannot think of it as an actual number. So, the best we can do is treat it as a variable.

The first is A=B=I. So since A and B have the same value, the answer is
A-B=0.

The second set says B=I, and A=2B. So, A=2I. the problem can be simplified as 2I-I=? Which becomes I=? So, the answer is I.

The third problem comes down to I/2-I=?. As I could be either negative or positive, it has 2 possible answers. If I is positive, the answer will be -I/2. If negative, I/2.

Of course, if you want to know what I equals for any of these, the answer you will always arrive at is I=I...

I think I have these maths right, but I am not sure. What are these problems for anyway? They seem more like an exercise in logic than math. The math is only basic algebra.

[Punstarr]

I totally flunked algebra. It makes my brain explode. Math isn't my forte. English Lit is.

[Narf the Mouse]

The piont is to think and discuss and see where it leads.

[One post wonder]

Oh... Sorry. I know there are other systems of math out there. Ones that actually use infinity as a range of values covering every value there is. I just do not know how to use them...

[Narf the Mouse]

For me, what I don't know is interesting. (Generally)

[Sir Ritalin]

The answer to each of them is, in fact, 42. To check this assertion, use B = infinity in the equation A - B = ? in each problem:

A - infinity = 42
42 + infinity = A
Clearly, A = infinity. The result checks out.

[Tom the Fanboy]

A = ?

This is not a riddle, it is a statement.
Say it out loud.

[Susan Calvin]

I'm and undecided value, and I'm proud!! ^^

[Dustman]

I remember a problem that a friend of mine posed to me. Which is greater: the number of integers between one and infinity, or the number of fractions between zero and one?

I got it wrong.

There are more decimal places, and here's why: for every integer between one and infinity, you can divide one by that number and get a fraction between zero and one. However, there are fractions in that range that don't have one as the numerator, so there are more fractions than integers.
I figured the two were equal.

[Narf the Mouse]

All decimal numbers can be divided by one. It's just a matter of which place the one is in.

For proof, just start thinking of a number system in which all whole numbers are divisable by two...

[Clambake 39]

It seems to me that the answer to all three of the original questions would be zero, as infinity minus itself is zero and multiplying and dividing infinity by any number still yields infinity.

[Sir Ritalin]

No. As I explained in my earlier post, infinity minus itself is 42.

[Clambake 39]

Oh, of course.

I'm terribly sorry to have gotten in the way of you jacking off all over Douglas Adams' grave with my legitimate attempt to answer the questions.

[One post wonder]

The thing I am still having a hard time figuring out is the answer I came up with the last equation. 1/2 infinity... How do you divide in half what by definition is all possible values? I mean, one way to look at it is counting endlessly by one half rather than by 1s, but although that has an infinite number of values, it is not at all the complete definition of infinity. An infinite number of values is skipped every time you count no matter how small of an increment you count by.

So, yeah... If someone could explain to me how a fraction of infinity could be handled, I would love it.

(And give him a break, Clambake. This thread stopped being serious long ago. It is pretty rare anything serious takes place on this forum anyway.)

[Narf the Mouse]

Simple. Ratios.

[Sir Ritalin]

I just meant that infinity minus infinity can be any number at all, because when you add infinity to any number you get infinity. It seems the way I chose to express this was less clever than I thought it was.