0 Divided by 0
Date: 11/27/97 at 17:19:53
From: Peter Rimshick
Subject: 0 divided by 0
What is the answer to 0 divided by 0? I think it is undefined because
of this equation:
0/0 = x/1
X can equal any number and still satisfy that equation by the cross
multiplication method. But I am starting to doubt myself because I was
talking to a couple of friends of mine about it and they said that it
is due to L'Hopital's Rule. I have looked it up on the Internet but
all the explanations are in calculus terms, which are like Greek to
me. Please help me figure this out.
Thanks.
Date: 12/15/97 at 10:39:53
From: Doctor Mark
Subject: Re: 0 divided by 0
Hi Peter,
Well, your friends are wrong. L'Hopital's rule does *not* tell you
what 0/0 is, because 0/0 is what is called an "indeterminate"
quantity, which is to say that its value depends on what the situation
is. To convince your friends of this, ask them the following question:
"Find the limit of (ax)/x as a approaches 0 by using L'Hopital's
rule."
They will get "a" (trust me!).
But if you just put x = 0 in this expression, you get 0/0. So,
according to L'Hopital, 0/0 is equal to a.
Did you notice that I didn't say what "a" was? That's because it
doesn't matter. You can pick a equal to anything you want. For
instance, you could pick a = 1. Then you would get