Blank (_)
 Usage
Notes
 Further Examples
Patterns, Rules, and Replacement This rule can be used to replace the logarithm of a power in the usual way.
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Rules are applied using the slash-dot operator.
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As an aside, this rule is not built into Mathematica because it is not correct in general.
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However, the built-in function PowerExpand does such transformations.
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Patterns in Function Definitions You can often simplify the definition of a function by putting the arguments in a suitable form and naming the important parts. In this case we are avoiding the use of [[]] (Part).
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To make this definition without pattern matching, you would need to use a module, local variables, conditionals, and some complicated constructions to get at the right pieces.
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We clear the definitions.
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Using FullForm The output you see from Mathematica is designed for human eyes. Expressions that look the same may be structurally different. FullForm reveals the internal representation of expressions.
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In this example, notice that the second square root is not transformed to become 1/s.
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FullForm shows that the representation of the square root depends on whether it is in the numerator or the denominator.
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One rule is needed for each case, and these can be put together in a list.
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