Mark44
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Actually, you did use ∞ in an arithmetic expression. You wrote E=∞-1 in post #27, to which I replied that ∞ - 1 is meaningless, as is any arithmetic expression involving the symbol ∞.DaveC426913 said:Nor am I doing so. I am conceptualizing an arbitrarily large number.
Having said that, some expressions using this symbol are meaningful, such as ##\infty + \infty## or ##\infty \times \infty##, which should really be thought of as the sum or product, respectively, of functions whose limits are ##\infty##.
Other arithmetic expressions, such as ##\infty - \infty##, ##\infty - n##, where n is any finite number, and ##\frac \infty \infty## are not defined, and are therefore meaningless.
But all you need to say is that the eccentricity is greater than 1.DaveC426913 said:You must grant that a hyperbola can have an eccentricity of an arbitrarily large value - there is no value on the real number line greater than 1 that a hyperbola cannot have as its eccentricity. Literally, anything shy of infinity.
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