ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Transcendental function

Imagine that you have a magic toy that can turn any number you give it into another number. That's what a transcendental function is - a magic toy that can transform numbers in a special way.

When we play with this magic toy, we can give it any number we want, and it will give us back a new number. But there's something special about the way it works. The new number it gives us is special - it can't be represented by any simple formula or equation. This means that it's a little bit mysterious and hard to understand, but also very powerful and useful.

One famous example of a transcendental function is the exponential function. This magic toy takes any number and raises it to the power of a special number called "e". This special number is about 2.71828... (it goes on forever), and it has some really cool properties.

When we use the exponential function, we get some really interesting results. For example, if we take the function f(x) = e^x (which means "e raised to the power of x"), and we plot it on a graph, we get a special curve that looks like a hill, sloping upwards to the right.

This curve is special because it shows us the relationship between two really important things in math: exponentials and logarithms. Logarithms are another type of magic toy that allow us to take any number and figure out what power we need to raise it to in order to get a certain result. They are the "opposite" of exponentials, in a way, and they are also very important and useful.

So, in summary: a transcendental function is a magic toy that takes any number and turns it into another number in a special, mysterious way. One famous example is the exponential function, which raises any number to the power of a special number called "e". Using these functions helps us explore important relationships in math and science, and opens up new avenues of research and discovery.