Uploaded June 2012 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Ever wondered what would happen if you divide by zero!?
In mathematics, division by zero is division where the divisor (denominator) is zero. Such a division can be formally expressed as a / 0 where a is the dividend (numerator). Whether this expression can be assigned a well-defined value depends upon the mathematical setting. In ordinary (real number) arithmetic, the expression has no meaning, as there is no number which, multiplied by 0, gives a (a≠0), and so division by zero is undefined. Historically, one of the earliest recorded references to the mathematical impossibility of assigning a value to a / 0 is contained in George Berkeley's criticism of infinitesimal calculus in The Analyst ("ghosts of departed quantities").[citation needed]
In computer programming, an attempt to divide a floating point number by zero will lead to +-infinity by the IEEE 754 floating point standard, however, depending on the programming language and the type of number (e.g. integer) being divided by zero, it may: generate an exception, generate an error message, crash the program being executed, generate either positive or negative infinity, or could result in a special not-a-number value. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_by_zero
Ever wondered what would happen if you divide by zero!?
In mathematics, division by zero is division where the divisor (denominator) is zero. Such a division can be formally expressed as a / 0 where a is the dividend (numerator). Whether this expression can be assigned a well-defined value depends upon the mathematical setting. In ordinary (real number) arithmetic, the expression has no meaning, as there is no number which, multiplied by 0, gives a (a≠0), and so division by zero is undefined. Historically, one of the earliest recorded references to the mathematical impossibility of assigning a value to a / 0 is contained in George Berkeley's criticism of infinitesimal calculus in The Analyst ("ghosts of departed quantities").[citation needed]
In computer programming, an attempt to divide a floating point number by zero will lead to +-infinity by the IEEE 754 floating point standard, however, depending on the programming language and the type of number (e.g. integer) being divided by zero, it may: generate an exception, generate an error message, crash the program being executed, generate either positive or negative infinity, or could result in a special not-a-number value. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_by_zero
