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In mathematics, the logarithm to base b is the inverse function of exponentiation with base b. That means that the logarithm of a number x to the base b is the exponent to which b must be raised to produce x. For example, since 1000 = 10 3, the logarithm base of 1000 is 3, or log 10 (1000) = 3.
He then called the logarithm, with this number as base, the natural logarithm. As noted by Howard Eves, "One of the anomalies in the history of mathematics is the fact that logarithms were discovered before exponents were in use." [16] Carl B. Boyer wrote, "Euler was among the first to treat logarithms as exponents, in the manner now so ...
The natural logarithm of a number is its logarithm to the base of the mathematical constant e, which is an irrational and transcendental number approximately equal to 2.718 281 828 459. [1] The natural logarithm of x is generally written as ln x, log e x, or sometimes, if the base e is implicit, simply log x.
Exponential functions with bases 2 and 1/2. The exponential function is a mathematical function denoted by () = or (where the argument x is written as an exponent).Unless otherwise specified, the term generally refers to the positive-valued function of a real variable, although it can be extended to the complex numbers or generalized to other mathematical objects like matrices or Lie algebras.
Exponential decay. A quantity undergoing exponential decay. Larger decay constants make the quantity vanish much more rapidly. This plot shows decay for decay constant (λ) of 25, 5, 1, 1/5, and 1/25 for x from 0 to 5. A quantity is subject to exponential decay if it decreases at a rate proportional to its current value.
Exponentiation is written as bn, where b is the base and n is the power; this is pronounced as " b (raised) to the (power of) n ". 1 When n is a positive integer, exponentiation corresponds to repeated multiplication of the base: that is, bn is the product of multiplying n bases: 1.
ln (r) is the standard natural logarithm of the real number r. Arg (z) is the principal value of the arg function; its value is restricted to (−π, π]. It can be computed using Arg (x + iy) = atan2 (y, x). Log (z) is the principal value of the complex logarithm function and has imaginary part in the range (−π, π].
Discrete logarithm. In mathematics, for given real numbers a and b, the logarithm log b a is a number x such that bx = a. Analogously, in any group G, powers bk can be defined for all integers k, and the discrete logarithm log b a is an integer k such that bk = a. In number theory, the more commonly used term is index: we can write x = ind r a ...