Subject: Help on syntax: cubes, 4th, 5th roots, etc.
From: Robert Graham Merkel
Date: Thu, 2 May 2002 13:14:49 +1000
On Wed, May 01, 2002 at 09:23:48PM -0300, synthespian wrote:
> Hello-
>
> Couldn't find it in the documentation: how do I write:
>
> cubic root
> 4th root
> 5th root, etc
>
The cube root of x is equal to x raised to the
power of 1/3 (in maxima notation (x^(1/3)).
Similarly, the 4th root of x is (x^(1/4)) the 5th root (x^(1/5)),
and so on.
>From Maxima itself:
(C6) solve(x^3 = y, x);
1/3 1/3
(SQRT(3) %I - 1) y (SQRT(3) %I + 1) y 1/3
(D6) [x = ---------------------, x = - ---------------------, x = y ]
2 2
The first two solutions are complex solutions (if you haven't done complex
numbers don't worry about them), but the last one shows the result.
--
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Robert Merkel rgmerk@mira.net
Go You Big Red Fire Engine
-- Unknown Audience Member at Adam Hills standup gig
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