Why do we use letters like x and y to represent numbers in algebra?
In: Mathematics
Essentially, think of the letters in algebra as the empty boxes you had in maths questions in school. Stuff like
2+ [ ] = 5,
where you’re supposed to fill in the missing number to make the maths add up. When the equations get more complicated and you need to start moving stuff around, it is very useful for that box, aka the missing part, or the “unknown”, if you like, to be represented by a symbol that is easy to write, as well as easy to say out loud. So we use letters, which we are already used to writing and saying out loud. Mathematicians are lazy, and this is the most convenient solution.
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