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Frednotbob t1_j6b369s wrote

Reply to comment by breckenridgeback in ELI5: Why do imaginary numbers even need to exist? by Tharsis101

Ah, okay. Thanks :)

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Future_Club1171 t1_j6bmjid wrote

For basics i is basically the square root of negative 1, this lets it do a couple useful things cause when dealing with control systems you can help avoid real zeros by tweaking the controls to create zeros at imaginary points ( which for a quadratic is always in a A +- root(B) form). So instead of stalling out it will occilate. For a simplified case, imaginary numbers let us make a cruise control that won’t just stop working on a highway.

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Krixwell t1_j6cdt5e wrote

This comment took a sharp turn from "Explain Like I'm 5" to "Explain Like I'm 5i+30".

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Future_Club1171 t1_j6cy1ut wrote

Imaginary numbers get like that. Since well most there uses are in higher maths.

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skeeve87 t1_j6ca81v wrote

As a control systems engineer......what?

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Future_Club1171 t1_j6cys20 wrote

It’s been awhile for me, not a control engineer but did my studies in mechanical engineering. So can’t speak for what you use in your day to day, but from what I remember controls (the math behind it) is tied with laplus transformation and the whole 1/t. Basically from those classes for feedback controls the zeros in laplus will say how it behaves in real life. And one way to avoid real zeros is forcing imaginary ones.

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skeeve87 t1_j6dr80v wrote

Ohhh Laplace transformations. I graduated electrical engineering, we used it a ton in school.

I haven't used it since class.

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Future_Club1171 t1_j6dysd4 wrote

Given what I’ve heard of most engineers, because we have software designed to solve all that stuff most of the stuff in class we don’t use ourselves lol. Though understanding the theory behind it still helps. Specially when something goes wrong you know what to look for.

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