Is -n always, sometimes, or never a positive number? Explain. I don't know what they mean by -n - is a negative number?
I am thinking it means negative number. So if it was asking what the absolute value of a negative number was it would always be a positive number. Correct?
so the answer would be sometimes and the explanation would be a negative number would be a positive number if it was asking for its absolute value
Think of -n as (-1)(n)
so it depends on the value of n
if n is positive, then -n is negative.
if n is negative, then -n is positive
e.g.
if n = 5 , -n = -5 , the opposite
if n = -5, then -n = -(-5) = +5
Is n always sometimes or never a positive number
The notation -n represents the negation or the negative value of a number 'n'. Whether -n is positive or not depends on the value of 'n'. Let me explain further:
- If 'n' is a positive number, then the negation -n will be a negative number. For example, if 'n' is equal to 5, then -n will be -5, which is a negative number.
- If 'n' is zero (0), then the negation -n will also be zero (0). In this case, -n is neither a positive nor a negative number.
- If 'n' is a negative number, then the negation -n will be a positive number. For instance, if 'n' is -3, then -n becomes +3, which is a positive number.
In summary, whether -n is positive, negative, or zero depends on the value of 'n'. If 'n' is positive, -n will be negative; if 'n' is zero, -n will also be zero; and if 'n' is negative, -n will become positive.