Natural logarithms first arose as more or less accidental variations of Napier's original logarithms. Their real significance was not recognized until later. The earliest natural logarithms occur in 1618. Logarithms are useful in many fields from finance to astronomy. Shortcuts Multiplication is a shortcut for addition.
Exponents are a shortcut for multiplication.
Recall that means . Logarithm is a shortcut for exponents. Before we review exponential and logarithmic functions, let's review the definition of a function and the graph of a function. A function is just a rule. The rule links one number to a second number in an orderly and specific manner.