answer:Good question! I have wondered this myself, and even after professors explaining it to me, it seems that there’s not one “meaning” for it; it’s just useful. Examples: 1) The exponential function (eΛx) is its own derivative, so it’s very useful for differentiation. f(x)=eΛx also makes the only differential equation such that f(x)=f’(x) [other than perhaps 0]. 2) The value e can be used to describe exponential growth (also, the function (1+1/x)^x limits to e as x goes to infinity) 3) It can be described as the sum of the infinite series 1/n! where n starts at 0. 4) It’s the base of the natural logarithm, so eΛ(lnx)=x. I’d love to hear what other Jellies have to say about this.