Re: Examples of SQL anomalies?

On Jul 1, 1:33 pm, -CELKO- <jcelko..._at_earthlink.net> wrote:
> >> What do you want to do about 0^0?
>
> 0^0 = 1.
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/0%5E0#Zero_to_the_zero_power<<
>
> Let me cut & paste what is at that link:
>
> The evaluation of 0^0 presents a problem, because different
> mathematical reasoning leads to different results. The best choice for
> its value — and indeed, whether or not to consider 0^0 indeterminate
> (i.e., undefined) — depends on the context. According to Benson
> (1999), "The choice whether to define 0^0 is based on convenience, not
> on correctness."[2]
>
> That is not very supportive of your position.

It also lists nine bullet points for why it should be treated as 1, and
two bullet points for why it should be treated as undefined. And it explicitly says:

"When 0^0 is regarded as an empty product of zeros, its value is 1."

which is the most directly relevant case when discussing aggregation.

Or you could read the section on Exponentiation in Abstraction Algebra

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/0%5E0#Exponentiation_in_abstract_algebra

and note that it also is consistent with 0^0 = 1.

Or you could just realize that exponentiation is not used as an aggregate operator, and the whole issue is just a red herring.

Marshall Received on Wed Jul 02 2008 - 00:52:11 CEST