Complex Numbers

This summary of algebraic operations on complex numbers will prepare you for solving quadratic equations with no solutions and the related implications for graphing quadratic and polynomial functions.

Complex Numbers

Learning Objectives

In this section, you will:

  • Add and subtract complex numbers.
  • Multiply and divide complex numbers.
  • Simplify powers of i

 

Figure 1


Discovered by Benoit Mandelbrot around 1980, the Mandelbrot Set is one of the most recognizable fractal images. The image is built on the theory of self-similarity and the operation of iteration. Zooming in on a fractal image brings many surprises, particularly in the high level of repetition of detail that appears as magnification increases. The equation that generates this image turns out to be rather simple.

In order to better understand it, we need to become familiar with a new set of numbers. Keep in mind that the study of mathematics continuously builds upon itself. Negative integers, for example, fill a void left by the set of positive integers. The set of rational numbers, in turn, fills a void left by the set of integers. The set of real numbers fills a void left by the set of rational numbers. Not surprisingly, the set of real numbers has voids as well. In this section, we will explore a set of numbers that fills voids in the set of real numbers and find out how to work within it.



Source: Rice University, https://openstax.org/books/college-algebra/pages/2-4-complex-numbers
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