In case you hadn’t heard, some whackjob claims to have solved the problem of dividing by zero.  Let me shit on his parade.

One: He claims the problem of dividing by zero has been around for 1,200 years and he has just solved it with ease.  Uh, there is no problem with dividing by zero.  It’s a simple mathematical concept that says dividing by nothing is impossible.  Why is that hard to understand?  No mathematician worth their degree would claim this ever represented a problem.  In fact, it’s inherent in our number system and is a meaningful non-problem for filtering out non-numeric results.

Two: He had to redefine multiplication and division operators to make them capable of returning nullity (his made-up symbol and meaning).  The only problem is nullity is an undefined value (like infinity and null).  When arithmetic functions are made capable of returning non-numeric values, they lose their strength and become nothing more than empty balderdash.  If a numeric function returns a value that cannot be compared with, for instance, greater than or less than, what’s the point?

Three: The man is innumerate at best.  He claims to have solved a problem that never existed by giving a new name to something that already existed via creating a non-numerical value that cannot exist that can be used in arithmetic computations that can never return a number.  Huh?  Precisely.  It’s garbage, and I’m appalled the Beeb has such ignorant reporters that they would print this as though it’s meaningful.  Why didn’t they go talk to some real mathematicians who would have laughed the concept right off the reporter’s desk?  Well, Beeb, why not?

Four: The concept is self-contradictory.  Here’s why: Let’s say A = 10 and B = nullity (his nonsensical creation).  According to this new theory, that means

A / 0 = B

Now, let’s use simple algebra to see where this takes us. If

A / 0 = B

then

B x 0 = A

Right?  Think about it.

A / 0 = B == B x 0 = A

But we already know anything multiplied by zero must equal zero.  So how is that supposed to work?  Again, he had to modify simple multiplication and division to make it work, yet it flies in the face of what we all learned in elementary school and what is the foundation of our mathematical and arithmetic world: zero is an empty number and returns an empty number when used in multiplication and returns a non-number when used in division.  To put it succinctly: When you multiply by nothing, you get nothing; When you divide by nothing, you get nothing; When you add nothing, you get what you started with; When you subtract nothing, you get what you started with.

Five: The man is a crank and doing a great disservice to the students he’s teaching.  They might not be sharp enough to recognize bullshit when they see it, so they’re walking out more mathematically ignorant than when they walked in, and he’s to blame—not to mention the BBC since they’re pushing it like it’s a real discovery and means something important.  It isn’t and it doesn’t.

So let’s review: Nullity is nonsense.  There is no problem with dividing by zero as it returns a useful result (non-number) that ties in with mathematical and computer concepts that are proven and reliable and CORRECT.  The BBC is pandering to ignorance and telling lies because they hadn’t the intellect to check their work or his, and they failed to talk to a single mathematician to verify what the man was saying.

Ultimately, nothing has changed.  A clueless git is puffing up his own head by saying he’s solved a problem that never existed by proposing a solution that is meaningless drivel.  Gosh, I wish I’d thought of that.