Mathematica vs Dan Asimov:
PUZZLE: Given that x^2 + log_10 (2x) = 3, solve for x > 0 in closed form
In[1]:= Solve[ x^2 + Log[10,2x] == 3, x ] InverseFunction::ifun: Inverse functions are being used. Values may be lost for multivalued inverses. Solve::ifun: Inverse functions are being used by Solve, so some solutions may not be found. ProductLog[500000 (Log[2] + Log[5])] Out[1]= {{x -> Sqrt[------------------------------------]}} 2 (Log[2] + Log[5]) Hmm, let's see if it can do any better than that... In[2]:= Simplify[%] 5 Log[10] Out[2]= {{x -> Sqrt[---------]}} Log[100] Aah, much better. I have no idea why it fails to recognize Log[10]/Log[100]. I'm not a Mma expert; there's probably some argument you can pass to Simplify to remind it to think about some extra transformation rules... --Michael Kleber kleber@brandeis.edu