Missing multiplication symbol: Difference between revisions

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When writing a division on one line, does an implied multiplication bind more tightly than an explicit one?<ref>[https://twitter.com/christianp/status/1320650593241866241 Twitter thread by Christian Lawson-Perfect]</ref>
When writing a division on one line, does an implied multiplication bind more tightly than an explicit one?<ref>[https://twitter.com/christianp/status/1320650593241866241 Twitter thread by Christian Lawson-Perfect]</ref>


Does \(a/bc = \frac{a}{bc}\) or \(\frac{a}{b}c\)?
Is \(a/bc\) equivalent to \(\frac{a}{bc}\) or \(\frac{a}{b}c\)?


There seems to be an unwritten rule "juxtaposition is stickier".
There seems to be an unwritten rule "juxtaposition is stickier".

Revision as of 09:17, 2 July 2021


It's common to omit a multiplication symbol:

\(ab = a \times b\)

But sometimes it's not as clear:

Does \( a(b+1) = a \times (b+1)\), or is \(a\) a function?

When writing a division on one line, does an implied multiplication bind more tightly than an explicit one?[1]

Is \(a/bc\) equivalent to \(\frac{a}{bc}\) or \(\frac{a}{b}c\)?

There seems to be an unwritten rule "juxtaposition is stickier".

But that might not apply when there are numbers involved: almost everyone would interpret \(2/3x\) as \(\frac{2}{3}x\) instead of \(\frac{2}{3x}\)

References