document.write( "Question 534988: Can a logarithm be a negative number? \n" ); document.write( "
Algebra.Com's Answer #351724 by Edwin McCravy(20060)\"\" \"About 
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
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document.write( "Yes, the logarithm of any positive number less than 1 is negative.\r\n" );
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document.write( "Example on your TI-84,\r\n" );
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document.write( "log(.9) = -.0457574906\r\n" );
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document.write( "However, logarithms can only be taken of positive numbers in the\r\n" );
document.write( "course you are taking.\r\n" );
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document.write( "[If you study higher mathematics, you will learn that logarithms of negative\r\n" );
document.write( "numbers are imaginary numbers.  That's why if you put your TI-84 in a+bi\r\n" );
document.write( "mode, that log(-2) = .3010299957+1.36437654i, but you will never run into that\r\n" );
document.write( "in the course you are now taking.  So as far as you are concerned now,\r\n" );
document.write( "logarithms can only be taken of positive numbers.  However the logarithms\r\n" );
document.write( "themselves can indeed be negative.)\r\n" );
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document.write( "Edwin
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