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Question: What is a Directed Number ?

Answer:

Positive and negative numbers such as +3 and –5 are called directed numbers because when represented on a number line the direction in which they are measured from the origin has to be taken into account.

Directed numbers are met in everyday life as temperatures. 02C is the origin: it is the freezing point of water. Negative numbers such as –8 are used to indicate temperatures below freezing, and positive numbers (usually with the + sign omitted) indicated temperatures above freezing.