Path: csiph.com!usenet.pasdenom.info!goblin2!goblin.stu.neva.ru!newsfeed.xs4all.nl!newsfeed2.news.xs4all.nl!xs4all!post.news.xs4all.nl!not-for-mail Return-Path: X-Original-To: python-list@python.org Delivered-To: python-list@mail.python.org X-Spam-Status: OK 0.066 X-Spam-Evidence: '*H*': 0.87; '*S*': 0.01; 'root': 0.05; 'subject:Python': 0.06; 'earliest': 0.09; 'terms,': 0.09; 'python': 0.11; '[*]': 0.16; 'numbers;': 0.16; 'roy': 0.16; 'subject: \n ': 0.16; 'symbols': 0.16; 'wrote:': 0.18; '>>>': 0.22; 'to:name:python-list@python.org': 0.22; 'instead.': 0.24; 'please?': 0.24; "i've": 0.25; 'header:In-Reply-To:1': 0.27; 'chris': 0.29; 'am,': 0.29; 'words': 0.29; 'message- id:@mail.gmail.com': 0.30; 'url:wiki': 0.31; "d'aprano": 0.31; 'steven': 0.31; 'url:wikipedia': 0.31; 'this.': 0.32; 'fri,': 0.33; 'maybe': 0.34; 'subject: (': 0.35; 'agree': 0.35; 'no,': 0.35; 'received:google.com': 0.35; 'url:org': 0.36; 'being': 0.38; 'to:addr:python-list': 0.38; 'to:addr:python.org': 0.39; 'called': 0.40; 'even': 0.60; 'numbers': 0.61; 'simple': 0.61; 'real': 0.63; 'between': 0.67; 'smith': 0.68; 'electrical': 0.74; 'square': 0.74; 'discovered': 0.83; 'snow': 0.91; 'from.': 0.93; 'taught': 0.96; '2013': 0.98 DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=20120113; h=mime-version:in-reply-to:references:date:message-id:subject:from:to :content-type; bh=XTBCPUYDW9q2MOij63eeo0gjPU8FFvBrGs43hGPsGCU=; b=wtexmU3eYVTSxhIHId4YItmkAWudFj1zoSvqzFNRxmTOtAvBQ4t6+teKQu7gqmExer U/d3RjFsC6p4auY7sIRm3FVd5DIZx98Db0TUxtJOg3XgGaiAyWDFUOQ9aoQGwPQCxHIA LSt3QOAhaljbx9Aqu9JKfHycUUAEKbYb83nnVWgMegcaHLTz+jGU0L1ghzi3c9fDow5A fF++tlSOwL23AQzBpuB7zSMHAAte2MFI99n8on6NVhiUmgqZT4s+fhemV0kdOlhmcJNC qZbRNHUDpMWiQaRf4JH7JghVSbBTbCmmDj+IvFWxNAr8ie0Ri+VmvmmrCStpVe8hI1BA OEFg== MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Received: by 10.52.230.35 with SMTP id sv3mr17379493vdc.27.1381484148901; Fri, 11 Oct 2013 02:35:48 -0700 (PDT) In-Reply-To: <525753ee$0$29984$c3e8da3$5496439d@news.astraweb.com> References: <525753ee$0$29984$c3e8da3$5496439d@news.astraweb.com> Date: Fri, 11 Oct 2013 20:35:48 +1100 Subject: Re: Complex literals (was Re: I am never going to complain about Python again) From: David To: "python-list@python.org" Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 X-BeenThere: python-list@python.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.15 Precedence: list List-Id: General discussion list for the Python programming language List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Newsgroups: comp.lang.python Message-ID: Lines: 25 NNTP-Posting-Host: 2001:888:2000:d::a6 X-Trace: 1381484151 news.xs4all.nl 15883 [2001:888:2000:d::a6]:38973 X-Complaints-To: abuse@xs4all.nl Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.python:56671 On 11 October 2013 12:27, Steven D'Aprano wrote: > On Fri, 11 Oct 2013 00:25:27 +1100, Chris Angelico wrote: > >> On Fri, Oct 11, 2013 at 12:09 AM, Roy Smith wrote: >>> BTW, one of the earliest things that turned me on to Python was when I >>> discovered that it uses j as the imaginary unit, not i. All >>> right-thinking people will agree with me on this. >> >> I've never been well-up on complex numbers; can you elaborate on this, >> please? All I know is that I was taught that the square root of -1 is >> called i, and that hypercomplex numbers include i, j, k, and maybe even >> other terms, and I never understood where j comes from. Why is Python >> better for using j? > > Being simple souls and not Real Mathematicians, electrical engineers get > confused by the similarity between I (current) and i (square root of -1), > so they used j instead. [...] > No, electrical engineers need many symbols for current for the same reason that eskimos need many words for snow :) [*] [*] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eskimo_words_for_snow