Inverse elementIn mathematics, the concept of an inverse element generalises the concepts of opposite (−x) and reciprocal (1/x) of numbers. Given an operation denoted here ∗, and an identity element denoted e, if x ∗ y = e, one says that x is a left inverse of y, and that y is a right inverse of x. (An identity element is an element such that x * e = x and e * y = y for all x and y for which the left-hand sides are defined.
MultiplicationMultiplication (often denoted by the cross symbol , by the mid-line dot operator , by juxtaposition, or, on computers, by an asterisk ) is one of the four elementary mathematical operations of arithmetic, with the other ones being addition, subtraction, and division. The result of a multiplication operation is called a product. The multiplication of whole numbers may be thought of as repeated addition; that is, the multiplication of two numbers is equivalent to adding as many copies of one of them, the multiplicand, as the quantity of the other one, the multiplier; both numbers can be referred to as factors.
Quadratic integerIn number theory, quadratic integers are a generalization of the usual integers to quadratic fields. Quadratic integers are algebraic integers of degree two, that is, solutions of equations of the form x2 + bx + c = 0 with b and c (usual) integers. When algebraic integers are considered, the usual integers are often called rational integers. Common examples of quadratic integers are the square roots of rational integers, such as , and the complex number i = , which generates the Gaussian integers.
Algebraic integerIn algebraic number theory, an algebraic integer is a complex number which is integral over the integers. That is, an algebraic integer is a complex root of some monic polynomial (a polynomial whose leading coefficient is 1) whose coefficients are integers. The set of all algebraic integers A is closed under addition, subtraction and multiplication and therefore is a commutative subring of the complex numbers. The ring of integers of a number field K, denoted by OK, is the intersection of K and A: it can also be characterised as the maximal order of the field K.
Eisenstein integerIn mathematics, the Eisenstein integers (named after Gotthold Eisenstein), occasionally also known as Eulerian integers (after Leonhard Euler), are the complex numbers of the form where a and b are integers and is a primitive (hence non-real) cube root of unity. The Eisenstein integers form a triangular lattice in the complex plane, in contrast with the Gaussian integers, which form a square lattice in the complex plane. The Eisenstein integers are a countably infinite set.
Gaussian integerIn number theory, a Gaussian integer is a complex number whose real and imaginary parts are both integers. The Gaussian integers, with ordinary addition and multiplication of complex numbers, form an integral domain, usually written as or Gaussian integers share many properties with integers: they form a Euclidean domain, and have thus a Euclidean division and a Euclidean algorithm; this implies unique factorization and many related properties. However, Gaussian integers do not have a total ordering that respects arithmetic.
Ring of integersIn mathematics, the ring of integers of an algebraic number field is the ring of all algebraic integers contained in . An algebraic integer is a root of a monic polynomial with integer coefficients: . This ring is often denoted by or . Since any integer belongs to and is an integral element of , the ring is always a subring of . The ring of integers is the simplest possible ring of integers. Namely, where is the field of rational numbers. And indeed, in algebraic number theory the elements of are often called the "rational integers" because of this.
Associative propertyIn mathematics, the associative property is a property of some binary operations, which means that rearranging the parentheses in an expression will not change the result. In propositional logic, associativity is a valid rule of replacement for expressions in logical proofs. Within an expression containing two or more occurrences in a row of the same associative operator, the order in which the operations are performed does not matter as long as the sequence of the operands is not changed.
IntegerAn integer is the number zero (), a positive natural number (, , , etc.) or a negative integer with a minus sign (−1, −2, −3, etc.). The negative numbers are the additive inverses of the corresponding positive numbers. In the language of mathematics, the set of integers is often denoted by the boldface Z or blackboard bold . The set of natural numbers is a subset of , which in turn is a subset of the set of all rational numbers , itself a subset of the real numbers . Like the natural numbers, is countably infinite.
Identity elementIn mathematics, an identity element or neutral element of a binary operation is an element that leaves unchanged every element when the operation is applied. For example, 0 is an identity element of the addition of real numbers. This concept is used in algebraic structures such as groups and rings. The term identity element is often shortened to identity (as in the case of additive identity and multiplicative identity) when there is no possibility of confusion, but the identity implicitly depends on the binary operation it is associated with.
Power associativityIn mathematics, specifically in abstract algebra, power associativity is a property of a binary operation that is a weak form of associativity. An algebra (or more generally a magma) is said to be power-associative if the subalgebra generated by any element is associative. Concretely, this means that if an element is performed an operation by itself several times, it doesn't matter in which order the operations are carried out, so for instance .
Coprime integersIn number theory, two integers a and b are coprime, relatively prime or mutually prime if the only positive integer that is a divisor of both of them is 1. Consequently, any prime number that divides a does not divide b, and vice versa. This is equivalent to their greatest common divisor (GCD) being 1. One says also a is prime to b or a is coprime with b. The numbers 8 and 9 are coprime, despite the fact that neither considered individually is a prime number, since 1 is their only common divisor.
Group theoryIn abstract algebra, group theory studies the algebraic structures known as groups. The concept of a group is central to abstract algebra: other well-known algebraic structures, such as rings, fields, and vector spaces, can all be seen as groups endowed with additional operations and axioms. Groups recur throughout mathematics, and the methods of group theory have influenced many parts of algebra. Linear algebraic groups and Lie groups are two branches of group theory that have experienced advances and have become subject areas in their own right.
Multiplication tableIn mathematics, a multiplication table (sometimes, less formally, a times table) is a mathematical table used to define a multiplication operation for an algebraic system. The decimal multiplication table was traditionally taught as an essential part of elementary arithmetic around the world, as it lays the foundation for arithmetic operations with base-ten numbers. Many educators believe it is necessary to memorize the table up to 9 × 9. The oldest known multiplication tables were used by the Babylonians about 4000 years ago.
Non-associative algebraA non-associative algebra (or distributive algebra) is an algebra over a field where the binary multiplication operation is not assumed to be associative. That is, an algebraic structure A is a non-associative algebra over a field K if it is a vector space over K and is equipped with a K-bilinear binary multiplication operation A × A → A which may or may not be associative. Examples include Lie algebras, Jordan algebras, the octonions, and three-dimensional Euclidean space equipped with the cross product operation.
Ancient Egyptian multiplicationIn mathematics, ancient Egyptian multiplication (also known as Egyptian multiplication, Ethiopian multiplication, Russian multiplication, or peasant multiplication), one of two multiplication methods used by scribes, is a systematic method for multiplying two numbers that does not require the multiplication table, only the ability to multiply and divide by 2, and to add. It decomposes one of the multiplicands (preferably the smaller) into a set of numbers of powers of two and then creates a table of doublings of the second multiplicand by every value of the set which is summed up to give result of multiplication.
Identity functionIn mathematics, an identity function, also called an identity relation, identity map or identity transformation, is a function that always returns the value that was used as its argument, unchanged. That is, when f is the identity function, the equality f(X) = X is true for all values of X to which f can be applied. Formally, if M is a set, the identity function f on M is defined to be a function with M as its domain and codomain, satisfying In other words, the function value f(X) in the codomain M is always the same as the input element X in the domain M.
Function compositionIn mathematics, function composition is an operation ∘ that takes two functions f and g, and produces a function h = g ∘ f such that h(x) = g(f(x)). In this operation, the function g is applied to the result of applying the function f to x. That is, the functions f : X → Y and g : Y → Z are composed to yield a function that maps x in domain X to g(f(x)) in codomain Z. Intuitively, if z is a function of y, and y is a function of x, then z is a function of x.
Operator associativityIn programming language theory, the associativity of an operator is a property that determines how operators of the same precedence are grouped in the absence of parentheses. If an operand is both preceded and followed by operators (for example, ^ 3 ^), and those operators have equal precedence, then the operand may be used as input to two different operations (i.e. the two operations indicated by the two operators). The choice of which operations to apply the operand to, is determined by the associativity of the operators.
Associative algebraIn mathematics, an associative algebra A is an algebraic structure with compatible operations of addition, multiplication (assumed to be associative), and a scalar multiplication by elements in some field K. The addition and multiplication operations together give A the structure of a ring; the addition and scalar multiplication operations together give A the structure of a vector space over K. In this article we will also use the term [[algebra over a field|K-algebra]] to mean an associative algebra over the field K.
