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From: stevesu@bronze.UUCP (Steve Summit)
Newsgroups: net.math
Subject: -1 = 1
Message-ID: <734@bronze.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 9-Sep-83 17:37:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: bronze.734
Posted: Fri Sep  9 17:37:32 1983
Date-Received: Sat, 10-Sep-83 08:14:39 EDT
Lines: 22

The proof that a = b was pretty obvious.  Here's one I discovered
by accident and still can't quite figure out:

1 = 1                   reflexive property of equality

2/2 = 2/2               another name for 1

  2/2    2/2
-1   = -1               raise -1 to both sides

  1              2       b/c      th         b
-1 = sqrt( ( -1 )  )    a    ==  c  root of a

                                     2
-1 = sqrt( 1 )          reduce ( -1 )	

-1 = 1                  reduce sqrt( 1 )

The mistake is probably in the fourth step, but no book I've seen
places restrictions on a, b, or c in that identity.

					Steve Summit