So what exactly is a complex number?

[Bryan Olson]

Tim Daneliuk wrote:
> Grzegorz Słodkowicz wrote:
[...]
>> You're mixing definition with application. You didn't say a word about 
>> what complex numbers are, not a word about the imaginary unit, where 
> 
> I was trying to motivate the idea by means of analogy.  This is a
> legitimate thing to do.  It helps lead people to a conceptual understanding
> long before they understand the minutae.   I am well aware of the
> imaginary unit and from whence complex analysis springs.  I just didn't
> think that was the best place to start explicating the *concept*.

Gotta side with Grzegorz on this. Simplifying an explanation
of complex numbers to the point of omitting the imaginary unit
helps lead people to a conceptual *misunderstanding*. I don't
like feeling confused, but where I really screw up is where I
think I understand what I do not.


-- 
--Bryan