Thinking of last-minute advice I can give my wife before she takes an algebra placement exam and I end up with: if they ask you to divide by a complex-valued number, refuse.

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I mean this as a way of conserving time and mental energy in exam conditions but I'm not sure I wouldn't adopt the rule for normal life too.

@nebusj looks like this guy believes in I-M-A-G-I-N-A-R-Y numbers. Next we'll be talking about "ghost numbers".

@nebusj though, in no seriousness, without dividing by complex numbers you can't divide 6 apples among 2+i friends (where one is an imaginary friend).

@mwt @nebusj if in that exam they're being made to divide by something vaguely Pythagorean like $$\frac35+\frac45 i$$ it's kind of a freebie tho. ;)

@tpfto @mwt Would almost be a freebie! Still probably not worth the effort.

It turns out there wasn't any complex-valued arithmetic on the exam anyway, which on the one hand, great; on the other hand, I'm surprised. Maybe it was luck of the random number draw.

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