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Comments on Can we add without using addition?

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Can we add without using addition?

+2
−6

Is there a formula that applies $a + b = c$ without addition. I tried many times to make such equation.

Here's what I have in mind, we get 2 values, call them $a$ and $b$. The objective is to get the sum, without using addition at all. What does "no addition" mean here? Basically, you can't use the addition operator in the equation. In fact, subtracting the additive inverse of $b$ to $a$ still counts as using the addition operator. No $\sum$ either.

So what else? "I tried many times to make such equation." Here's an example I did with $2 + 3 = 5$:

$$2 + 3 = 5$$ $$2 \times 3 = 6 \ne 5$$ $$6 - (3 - 2) = 6 - 1 = 5$$

So I thought $(a \times b) - (b - a)$ was plausible, but then I tried $3 + 6 = 9$:

$$3 + 6 = 9$$ $$3 \times 6 = 18 \ne 9$$ $$18 - (6 - 3) = 18 - 3 = 15 \ne 9$$

I haven't tried division yet because it can result to decimals, and we all know how fuzzy they are.

If it is even possible, can you get 2 values to result to their sum without any form of addition?

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3 comment threads

Generally it doesn't make any sense (1 comment)
You used addition in your proposed method. (2 comments)
Unclear what ‘pretty much just addition’ forbids (2 comments)
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+3
−0

Yes, we can.

log(10^x * 10^y)

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2 comment threads

Bravo, a very imaginative answer. But does this really avoid addition? Lets say I want to compute 1+2... (1 comment)
Now *that*'s the kind of answer I'm looking for. (2 comments)
Bravo, a very imaginative answer. But does this really avoid addition? Lets say I want to compute 1+2...
Estela‭ wrote over 2 years ago · edited over 2 years ago

Bravo, a very imaginative answer. But does this really avoid addition? Lets say I want to compute 1+2 without addition using that formula. I plug 1 and 2 into x and y and I have a formula which I need to solve to get the result. How will I solve that? No electronic calculators allowed because all of them use addition to solve logarithms.