I might have just disproved math.

[Zack1501]

So, I have an interesting math based question. If you don't like/hate math or don't understand basic algebra(I understand if you don't) just hit the big THE ESCAPIST logo in the corner and that will bring you home.

I wanted to know zero divided by zero equals. I tried to do at algebraically. This is what I did:

-The answer I was trying to get will be represented by x
0/0=x
-I Multiply both sides by zero
0=0x
-This equals out to be 0=0 because anything times 0 is 0.
-This proves that x can be any number. for example if 5=x than 0=5*0 still is 0=0
-I rearrange 0=0x to be:
0/x=0
-Now since x can be any number now lets say x=0
-That makes this:
0/0=0
-And since x=0/0 (Right in the beginning^) and 0=0/0 also then x=0
-If you fallowed so far and remember that x can be any number then that means zero can also be any and every number. So 0 can now equal 5 or any other number.

I realize something is most likely wrong here.
So tell me escapist, Did i Disprove math?
Edit: I see the error now. Its not that x equals 0 its that at one point x CAN = 0

 

[Promethax]

I think you lost all mathematical credibility as soon as you used "times" as a verb.

 

[Vegosiux]

So, I have an interesting math based question. If you don't like/hate math or don't understand basic algebra(I understand if you don't) just hit the big THE ESCAPIST logo in the corner and that will bring you home.

I wanted to know zero divided by zero equals. I tried to do at algebraically. This is what I did:

-The answer I was trying to get will be represented by x
0/0=x
-I times both sides by zero
0=0x
-This equals out to be 0=0 because anything times 0 is 0.
-This proves that x can be any number. for example if 5=x than 0=5*0 still is 0=0
-I rearrange 0=0x to be:
0/x=0
-Now since x can be any number now lets say x=0
-That makes this:
0/0=0
-And since x=0/0 (Right in the beginning^) and 0=0/0 also then x=0
-If you fallowed so far and remember that x can be any number then that means zero can also be any and every number. So 0 can now equal 5 or any other number.

I realize something is most likely wrong here.
So tell me escapist, Did i Disprove math?

Disproved math? No. Proved that you hardly know anything about math? Yes.

I bolded the part where you completely missed the point and made a conclusion that could only be characterized as and "ass pull", because 0/0 is an undefined expression.

 

[Zack1501]

I think you lost all mathematical credibility as soon as you used "times" as a verb.

Thats English my friend and I had none of that to begin with.

 

[z121231211]

Because obviously mathematicians haven't thought of this idea before you did.

Just think about it, there are people out there that are paid to mathematically prove things and think of theories of numbers themselves.

Think about that next time you believe you've had an original thought.

 

[Hal10k]

Because obviously mathematicians haven't thought of this idea before you did.

Hey, that's an incomplete sentence. I think you've just disproved the English language.

OT: I think you need to rethink this problem.

 

[Zack1501]

So, I have an interesting math based question. If you don't like/hate math or don't understand basic algebra(I understand if you don't) just hit the big THE ESCAPIST logo in the corner and that will bring you home.

I wanted to know zero divided by zero equals. I tried to do at algebraically. This is what I did:

-The answer I was trying to get will be represented by x
0/0=x
-I times both sides by zero
0=0x
-This equals out to be 0=0 because anything times 0 is 0.
-This proves that x can be any number. for example if 5=x than 0=5*0 still is 0=0
-I rearrange 0=0x to be:
0/x=0
-Now since x can be any number now lets say x=0
-That makes this:
0/0=0
-And since x=0/0 (Right in the beginning^) and 0=0/0 also then x=0
-If you fallowed so far and remember that x can be any number then that means zero can also be any and every number. So 0 can now equal 5 or any other number.

I realize something is most likely wrong here.
So tell me escapist, Did i Disprove math?

Disproved math? No. Proved that you hardly know anything about math? Yes.

I bolded the part where you completely missed the point and made a conclusion that could only be characterized as and "ass pull", because 0/0 is an undefined expression.

So if 0/0=x and 0/0=0 then 0 does not equal x? I don't understand what you mean, please elaborate. I actuality want to understand why this is wrong past the usual argument of "Well you just cant divide by zero" That might be true but i have yet to find a person to tell me why I cant.

 

[Berithil]

Doesn't work that way. Unless I'm missing something, your saying XY=Z therefore X=YZ. But 5x5=25 does not equal 5=5x? 5=5x25 doesn't work.
Multiplying anything by zero will always end in zero, because zero is a digit representing nothing. Unless I'm misunderstanding, of course

 

[Zack1501]

Because obviously mathematicians haven't thought of this idea before you did.

Just think about it, there are people out there that are paid to mathematically prove things and think of theories of numbers themselves.

Think about that next time you believe you've had an original thought.

I never said i was the first one to think of this. In fact 0/0 is considered to be indeterminate. Indeterminate means: Not certain, known, or established. So no one actually knows what it equals. Where as 1/0 is considered undefined or Infinity.

 

[3 legged goat]

You can't divide by zero.

 

[Zack1501]

Doesn't work that way. Unless I'm missing something, your saying XY=Z therefore X=YZ. But 5x5=25 does not equal 5=5x? 5=5x25 doesn't work.
Multiplying anything by zero will always end in zero, because zero is a digit representing nothing. Unless I'm misunderstanding, of course

You did miss something. (unless I misunderstand your misunderstanding) I'm saying x/y=z therefore x=yz so 5/5=1 to 5=5*1.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

OP, you do know that 0 is less a number and more a placeholder for the concept of nothingness, right? 0/0 is trying to put nothing into no groups. An interesting idea philosophically, but not really possible mathematically.

 

[Zack1501]

You can't divide by zero.

Why not?

 

[Zack1501]

OP, you do know that 0 is less a number and more a placeholder for the concept of nothingness, right? 0/0 is trying to put nothing into no groups. An interesting idea philosophically, but not really possible mathematically.

Yeah, I assumed that this was more of a problem with our representation of math more than math its self. I have herd some of the early civilizations not use zero.

 

[Cazza]

The idea of being able to "disprove math" is retarded. You may find a flaw in our understanding of maths as we are still learning. How many mathematicians are there in the wolrd? I think my might have thought about this for awhile (0/0).

 

[Lilani]

-I times both sides by zero

Please don't ever say that again. Please. Ever. Please.

 

[Berithil]

Doesn't work that way. Unless I'm missing something, your saying XY=Z therefore X=YZ. But 5x5=25 does not equal 5=5x? 5=5x25 doesn't work.
Multiplying anything by zero will always end in zero, because zero is a digit representing nothing. Unless I'm misunderstanding, of course

You did miss something. (unless I misunderstand your misunderstanding) I'm saying x/y=z therefore x=yz so 5/5=1 to 5=5*1.

Ok I see. But still, you can't multiply by zero. Zero equals nothing. When you multiply, your pretty much asking " what do I get if I add x number of y's." For instance, adding 3 digits of five will be fifteen, ergo 3x5 = 15. When you multiply by zero your asking "what do I get when I add zero digits of 5 (lets use 5 here for demonstration purposes). Well, you get nothing, cause you have nothing to work with to begin with. That's why you can't multiply by zero.

 

[DoPo]

I actuality want to understand why this is wrong past the usual argument of "Well you just cant divide by zero" That might be true but i have yet to find a person to tell me why I cant.

This is what wrong with it: division by zero leaves you with an undefined answer. You end up out of scope of the real numbers set (maybe even the transcendental numbers. I'm not that much of a Math guy), so you can't imagine x is 5 or 3.14 or even 0, because they are all numbers and defined. Let me walk you through it:

-The answer I was trying to get will be represented by x
0/0=x

Right here - you start off with an undefined variable.

-I times both sides by zero
0=0x

And suddenly you get a new expression which is wrong, because you just divided by 0, to get that non-fraction zero there.

-This equals out to be 0=0 because anything times 0 is 0.

Even assuming, that up there was a legitimate expression, undefined times 0 is not zero. Imagine you don't have a car and you try to get in it. That is sort of what you're trying to do - it doesn't make sense.

-This proves that x can be any number. for example if 5=x than 0=5*0 still is 0=0

Covered above - x is undefined to begin with.

-I rearrange 0=0x to be:
0/x=0
-Now since x can be any number now lets say x=0
-That makes this:
0/0=0
-And since x=0/0 (Right in the beginning^) and 0=0/0 also then x=0
-If you fallowed so far and remember that x can be any number then that means zero can also be any and every number. So 0 can now equal 5 or any other number.

And you here see what is wrong, because x can be any number but at the same time cannot (0/0 should yield a single result not "any number I wish it to be") it means that you can't divide by zero and end up with any sensible result.

So tell me escapist, Did i Disprove math?

As mentioned by others above, no you didn't. You just disproved you know how to do Maths, because you took the basic principle of "you cannot divide by zero", totally ignored it and got to a point where you actually see that the result of division by zero is impossible.

Ok I see. But still, you can't multiply by zero.

Yes, you can. You always get zero, though.

 

[Singularly Datarific]

Zero over zero is undefined.
It can have ANY value, thus we cannot define it as a single value.
Mathematical limits can be used to prove this, such as Sin(x)/x.
Sin(0)=0
0=0
Thus
Sin(0)/0=0/0
HOWEVER: As Sin(x)/x approaches 0, the value approaches 1. You can either view this graphically, or by using L'Hopital's rule (if the limit is indefinite, you can take the derivative of both the top and bottom values until it is definite. It usually works, but only if it ever does become definite).
So instead of
Lim(x->0) Sin(x)/x
you have
Lim(x->0) Cos(x)/1
Which is equal to 1.
HOWEVER- this is just a SINGLE example of finding 0/0. There are COUNTLESS equations to find this indeterminate number, and there is an infinite amount of possible values.

 

[crudus]

Why not?

The officially reason is something to the effect of "There is no number x that can be multiplied by 0 to equal 1".

-If you fallowed so far and remember that x can be any number then that means zero can also be any and every number. So 0 can now equal 5 or any other number.

Why is that true?