Comment by Izkata
3 years ago
The asterisk is an approximation of dot, not a replacement for x. They just mean the same thing on scalars.
3 years ago
The asterisk is an approximation of dot, not a replacement for x. They just mean the same thing on scalars.
Using × or ∙ for multiplication is, IIUC, a cultural differentiator – just like English uses . as a decimal separator, but many Europeans use , for the same purpose. But in Unicode, × is “MULTIPLICATION SIGN” and ∙ is “BULLET OPERATOR”, and * is more visually similar to × than ∙, so I assume that’s where it originates.