"Mark Mallory" wrote in message
...


Chergarj wrote:

Can you use ones [1's] indescriminately in algebra? If not why not...



You could, but you would either be wasteful in your steps, or wrong in
your
steps, depending on the context of your quantitative endeaver.

Was that question serious?

Yes it is serious: Many years ago I overheard a H.S. algebra teacher tell
his class _something to the effect_ that the number one [1] was such that it
didn't change the value (of an equation) when it was inserted in an
equation. That made a lasting impression, since I didn't understand then,
and don't now:

In particular: Writing that acceleration [a] is _inversely_ proportional to
the mass [m] of a body, as [a is proportional to 1/m]. That somehow doesn't
look 'copesthetic' to me; especially if 'm' is a variable.

I thought the rule might be simple enough for me to understand; but it's
not, according to 'The Ghost in the Machine'.

Sadly, it was.

Cut The rest of Mark's [ignorant; prejudicial jealous, and cutting]
comentary(;^)