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From: cscussel@ihuxq.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.math
Subject: Near-miss equalities
Message-ID: <303@ihuxq.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 22-Aug-83 22:46:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: ihuxq.303
Posted: Mon Aug 22 22:46:28 1983
Date-Received: Tue, 23-Aug-83 15:34:30 EDT
Organization: BTL Naperville, Il.
Lines: 17

OK, time to unload statistics and get on to some serious mathematical fun.
Consider "equations" that fall into the category "close but no cigar"
(CBNC?). For example,

		tan(125/99) = pi

		exp(pi*sqrt(163) = xxxxxxxxx.99999999999950....

Things which have no reason to work, but are close. Knuth in Volume 1
mentions that the sum of a number's common and natural logs is close
to its log base 2 ( minorly useful fact to computer people). 
Anyone have any personal favorites?

				Chris Scussel
				Bell Labs
				Naperville, Illinois
				ihuxq!cscussel