difference between * and &; for example 101 * 101 and 101 & 101 ?

Ryan$

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Jan 25, 2019
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Hi guys, maybe it's not related that much to math but yeah it's related a lil.
what's the difference between * and & ? for example
101 * 101 , 101 & 101 ? thanks alot,
 
The * symbol is often used for multiplication simply because the x symbol (for multiplication) could be mistaken for the variable x.
The & symbol means "and".
 
so "and" isn't multiplication ? if so, then it's something new for me... I always say and and multiplication is the same term...
 
In basic probability we sometimes use the word "and" to indicate multiplication and "or" to indicate addition, but a lot of care must be taken when doing so.
 
So generally multiply isn't and .. I must differentiante between.. Right?
 
The difference between the symbols "*" and "&" depends entirely on what context we're operating in. In our usual mathematics, the asterisk () means multiplication. But in Boolean Algebra, an asterisk is sometimes used as a substitute for the logical and operator (\(\displaystyle \wedge\)), such that \(\displaystyle \text{TRUE} * \text{FALSE} = \text{TRUE} \wedge \text{FALSE} = \text{FALSE}\).

In some programming languages, such as Javascript, the ampersand (&) operator is defined as the "bitwise and" operator which "returns a 1 in each bit position for which the corresponding bits of both operands are 1s." For example, \(\displaystyle 5 \: \& \: 13 = 5\) because 5 is 0101 in binary and 13 is 1101 in binary and \(\displaystyle 0101 \: \& \: 1101 = 0101\).

In other contexts, each of these symbols may have other, alternate meanings. Some meanings are more "standard" than others, but it all depends on what the author wants them to mean.
 
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Along the line of what Harry the Cat asked what is 4 and 5? AFTER you get your answer think if YOU added or multiplied.
 
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