Re:1/0 = 0
by hexane360 on Friday August 10, 2018 @04:39PM
(#17736567)
Yes, that's correct. The fact that 1/0 shouldn't be defined as infinity isn't an argument that it should be defined as 0.
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There are many contexts where defining either 1/0 = -1/0 = ∞ or 1/0 = +∞ and –1/0 = –∞ is better than the alternatives, especially when working in an approximate number system like floating point.
In geometric modeling kinds of applications, I would say that these definitions are typically desirable, with 1/0 = undefined only better in unusual cases. As a simple example, it is typically much more useful for the “tangent” of a right angle to be defined as ∞ than left undefined.
But anyhow, there are no “facts” involved here. Only different choices of mathematical models, which can be more or less convenient depending on context / application.