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What times itself equals minus?

Updated: 8/19/2019
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12y ago

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In order to represent the square root of a minus number (which does not in fact actually exist other than as an abstract notion), mathematicians use an imaginary number called "i". i represents the value of the square root of -1. We must remember that it is not a real number, which is why we call it imaginary.

So to answer your question, i, or a multiple of i, times itself equals a minus number.

For example 2i * 2i = -4 (this is because we can rewrite -4 as 4 * -1. The square root of 4 is 2 and the square root of -1 is i. Therefore the square root of -4 is 2i).

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12y ago
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