Today’s featured article on Wikipedia is a very extensive discussion on 0.999…, which even mentions the Straight Dope. Perhaps the next time some knucklehead argues about this, we can just redirect them to Wikipedia.
Perhaps not, since it’s inaccurate;
No it doesn’t.
Balls. Yes it does.
I’m officially less accurate than Wikipedia. Ouch.
1/9 = 0.111…
(1/9)*9=0.111…*9
9/9=0.999…
1=0.999…
Only for some values of 0.999…
(As the Wikipedia article says several times, you can construct consistent number systems in which infinitesimals exist, and 0.999… is not equal to 1. And in those systems, where the proof by aclubs goes wrong is in the first line, because 1/9 is not equal to 0.111…)
Hmmn.
<<Gets Scientific Calculator>>
<<Punches in 1 divided by 9>>
I get .111…
That must be a bigggggg calculator!
Plus, I’m surprised that Dragwyr has been able to verify, in less that 4 hours, that all the digits are 1. Dragwyr must read a lot faster than I do.
Well, yeah. Giles said that these systems exist, not that scientific calculators use them. Bit of a difference there.
1/3 = .33333…
3 x .33333… = .999999…
Therefore 1 = .9999…
I actually have a calculator that’s supposed to support hyperreal computations, but alas, it’s too narrow for all of the buttons.
When i went to look at the article someone had written Fuck You all over. When i went back to link it was taken off in a matter of two minutes.