e the EXPONENTIAL - the Magic Number of GROWTH
Keith Tognetti - University of Wollongong NSW 2522 Australia
12 February 1998
This Module is written as a self contained introduction to e, bringing together the main theorems and important properties of this fundamental constant of natural growth processes.
Not only is an axiomatic treatment given but this is complemented by some theorems that have been selected for their unexpected beauty.
It assumes only an elementary understanding of integration. Some anecdotes and history are also included. It will be seen that Euler's gamma constant also comes into the main theorem and this highlights the intimate interconnection between e, the area under the curve 1/x, and the the truncated Harmonic series.