The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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The number 0 has unique properties, including when a number is multiplied or divided by 0. Multiplying a number by 0 equals 0. For example, 256 × 0 = 0. Dividing a number by 0, however, is undefined.
Why is dividing a number by 0 undefined? Suppose dividing 5 by 0 produces a number x:
From 
it follows that 0 × x must be 5. But the product of 0 and any number is always 0. Therefore, there is no number x that works, and division by 0 is undefined.
If division by 0 were allowed, it could be proved—falsely—that 1 = 2. Suppose x = y. Using valid properties of equations, the above equation is rewritten
x2 = xy (after multiplying both sides by x)
x2 - y2 = xy - y2 (after subtracting y2 from both sides)
(x - y)(x + y) = y(x - y) (after factoring both sides)
(x + y) = y (after dividing both sides by (x - y))
2y = y (x = y, based on the original supposition)
2 = 1 (after dividing both sides by y)
This absurd result (2 = 1) comes from division by 0. If x = y, dividing by (x - y) is essentially dividing by 0 because x - y = 0.
It is interesting to note that dividing a number such as 5 by a series of increasingly small numbers (0.1, 0.01, 0.001, and so on) produces increasingly large numbers (50, 500, 5000, and so on). This division sequence can be written as 
where x approaches but never equals 0. In mathematical language, as x approaches 0, 
increases without limit or that 
infinity.
Amdahl, Kenn, and Jim Loats. Algebra Unplugged. Broomfield, CO: Clearwater Publishing Co., 1995.
Miller, Charles D., Vern E. Heeren, and E. John Hornsby, Jr. Mathematical Ideas, 9th ed. Boston: Addison-Wesley, 2001.