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Date:	Mon, 14 Feb 2005 23:34:58 PST8
From:	"Gregory W. Smith" <gsmith@well.com >
Reply-To:	scoug-programming@scoug.com
To:	scoug-programming@scoug.com
Subject:	SCOUG-Programming: Open Source Object Rexx

Content Type: text/plain

I take back what I said about the attributes DECIMAL(8) and
BINARY(64) being semantic sugar. Semantic crack-cocaine is more
like it, and someone has been inhaling too deeply.

> You may see 14/3 as a rational number. Unfortunately it is
> data (14, 3) separated by a division operator (/).

I see 14/3 as a FORMAL MATHMATICAL CONSTRUCT that is called
a rational number. I can (well, I used to be able to) prove
formal mathmatical theorems about the field of rational numbers.
These theorems go out the window as soon as the number gets
converted to a positional numbering system. And any analysis
that makes use of those theorems is useless after that conversion.

> As such it is
> an expression whose evaluation produces a value in some
> base-N system. That value, as you have shown, depends on
> which base-N system you use. However, in that base-N
> system the 14/3 in decimal is not the same 14/3 in base-N. In
> fact in a base-3 sytem it doesn't exist at all: it's inexpressible.
> It doesn't come into existence until you get to a base-5. (0, 1,
> 2, 3, 4).

Balderdash. Are you also going to tell me that 14/3 can not
be represented in a binary computer?

--
Gregory W. Smith (WD9GAY) gsmith@well.com

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