Square me, and I turn into a negative integer. I do not sit anywhere on the real number line, yet mathematicians and engineers rely on me to calculate complex systems. What am I?
The imaginary unit (i)
The imaginary unit i is defined such that i^2 = -1, forming the base of complex numbers.
About this riddle
Math riddles hide a calculation inside a short story. Pull out the numbers, work out what is being asked, and watch for a trick such as a unit change.
Difficulty: Medium. More like this: Math riddles with answers or try Target 24 for a different kind of puzzle.
More math riddles
Three friends share a pizza cut into 12 slices. Alice eats twice as many slices as Bob, and Charlie eats three times as many slices as Bob. How many slices does Alice eat?
I am a three-dimensional geometric polyhedron. I have no curved surfaces, exactly six vertices, and nine straight edges. What shape am I?
An advent calendar has 24 doors, and you have opened 10. How many are left?
What single mathematical symbol can be placed between 5 and 9 to create a number that is greater than 5 but less than 9?
I have three dimensions: length, width, and height. All six of my faces are identical squares. What am I?
I am a fraction. If you add 1 to my numerator, I reduce to 1/2. If you add 1 to my denominator instead, I reduce to 1/3. What fraction am I?