Difference between revisions of "Elementary symmetric sum"
Mysmartmouth (talk | contribs) |
Mysmartmouth (talk | contribs) m |
||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
− | |||
== Definition == | == Definition == | ||
Line 16: | Line 15: | ||
== Uses == | == Uses == | ||
− | Symmetric sums show up in [[Vieta's | + | Symmetric sums show up in [[Vieta's formulas]] |
Revision as of 13:14, 18 June 2006
Definition
The nth symmetric sum is the sum of a group of numbers, taken n at a time. So if the numbers are a, b, c, and d, then:
1st Symmetric Sum = a+b+c+d
2nd Symmetric Sum = ab+ac+ad+bc+bd+cd
3rd Symmetric Sum = abc+abd+acd+bcd
4th Symmetric Sum = abcd
Uses
Symmetric sums show up in Vieta's formulas