e (mathematics)

e • symb. ∎  (also e⁻) Chem. an electron. ∎  (e) Math. the transcendental number that is the base of Napierian or natural logarithms, approximately equal to 2.71828. e³ / ē/ • n. (pl. e's ) an e-mail system, message, or messages.• v. (e'd, e'ing) [tr.] 1. send an e-mail to (someone): e me to make an offer.2. send (a message) by e-mail.

e Maths., symbol for the base of natural (Napierian) logarithms
• (ital.) Maths., symbol for eccentricity (of an ellipse or other conic)
• (or e.) electromotive
• (or e) Physics, symbol for electron
• (ital.) Physics, symbol for electron (or proton) charge
• (ital.) Chem., symbol for equatorial conformation (of molecules)
• Physics, symbol for positron (in e⁺)
• Maths., symbol for the transcendental number 2.718.282 …
• (bold ital.) Maths., symbol for unit coordinate vectors (in e_x, e_y, e_z)
• Meteorol., symbol for wet air
• indicating the fifth vertical row of squares from the left on a chessboard

e in mathematics, irrational number occurring widely in mathematics and science, approximately equal to the value 2.71828; it is the base of natural, or Naperian, logarithms . The number e is defined as the limit of the expression (1+1/ n ) ⁿ as n becomes infinitely large, or In 1873 the French mathematician C. Hermite proved that e was transcendental, i.e., not a root of any algebraic equation; this proof constituted a great contribution to the growth of mathematics. The number e is also known as Euler's number, for Leonhard Euler, who discovered the famous formula e^iπ =-1, where i = -1 , thus expressing the relationship between the numbers e, i, and π. The exponential function e ^x , often written exp( x ), occurs in various applications ranging from statistics to nuclear physics.

Bibliography: See study by E. Maor (1994).