Re: Math trivia

["Joan Stovall" <joans@pcez.com>]

	The exponential constant, e, was derived in the following manner.  

	e = the limit of (1 + 1/n)**n as n approaches infinity.

	**n means to the nth power

Joan E. Stovall, CHP

email: joans@pcez.com 

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> From: Diane Elmer <elmer@idns.state.il.us>
> To: Multiple recipients of list <radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu>
> Subject: Math trivia
> Date: Wednesday, April 15, 1998 12:05 PM
> 
> I was with my niece this past weekend - a high school senior taking
honors 
> calculus.  She asked me where e (the natural exponential constant -
2.718282) 
> came from.  I told her that I thought it had been empirically derived by 
> observation of exponential processes, but that was just an educated guess

> on my part.  Does anyone know the correct answer?
> 
> Please reply to me at:
> elmer@idns.state.il.us
> 
> Thanx,
> 
> Diane Elmer
> 
>