e has always bothered me — not the letter, but the mathematical constant. What does it really mean?
Math books and even my beloved Wikipedia describe e using obtuse jargon:
The mathematical constant e is the base of the natural logarithm.
And when you look up the natural logarithm you get:
The natural logarithm, formerly known as the hyperbolic logarithm, is the logarithm to the base e, where e is an irrational constant approximately equal to 2.718281828459.
Nice circular reference there. It’s like a dictionary that defines labyrinthine with Byzantine: it’s correct but not helpful. What’s wrong with everyday words like “complicated”?
I’m not picking on Wikipedia — many math explanations are dry and formal in their quest for rigor. But this doesn’t help beginners trying to get a handle on a subject (and we were all a beginner at one point).
No more! Today I’m sharing my intuitive, high-level insights about what e is and why it rocks. Save your rigorous math book for another time. Here’s a quick video overview of the insights: