4 ms·

> I don't think that captures the full detail of exactly what a transcendental is I completely agree but I think it captures the spirit of what a transcendenta

• ColinWright 5y ago
  That's true, but it's not answering the original question as asked. The original question says: > So in layman's terms, what exactly does it mean to be transcendental? How would a transcendental number be different from an ordinary number, say 5. Saying that you "can't write it down in terms of basic arithmetic" doesn't make clear what you mean by that, and I feel it would be unsatisfying for the original poster. To say you CWIDITOBA is not saying exactly what it means, and I can imagine the original poster coming back and asking ... "But what does that mean? What is basic arithmetic?" The answer submitted here explains exactly that.
  • addicted 5y ago
    The answer covers the original question exactly. The original question conveniently gives an example of an "ordinary number" as 5. Which indicates what they mean by ordinary numbers is indeed integers, and the answer completely explains how transcedental numbers differ from "ordinary numbers".