Re: Order of operations (was: Eigenvalues &/or eigenvectors,
Re: Order of operations (was: Eigenvalues &/or eigenvectors,
- Subject: Re: Order of operations (was: Eigenvalues &/or eigenvectors,
- From: Christopher Nebel <email@hidden>
- Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 13:37:46 -0700
On Friday, May 16, 2003, at 08:34 AM, Nigel Smith wrote:
On 15/5/03 11:21, "Christopher Nebel" <email@hidden> wrote:
Standard algebraic precedence rules say that the exponent comes
first, and *then* the negative; hence, "-x^2" is always negative for
real values of x.
...and...
Once again, go read the alt.algebra.help FAQ if you still don't get
this. <http://home.earthlink.net/~aahfaq/node27.html>
But, and I hate to go against one of the Gods of AppleScript, the same
FAQ states that explicit unary operators are, in some implementations,
given a higher order of precedence than the algebraic negative (which
is usually thought of as being equivalent to "multiply by -1", not
"subtract from 0" as some others have stated).
That's entirely correct. However, some people were claiming that *even
in algebra*, "-x^2" should come out positive, and that's what I was
addressing. As I said previously, AppleScript does not follow normal
algebraic precedence rules. This is documented, and makes a perfectly
self-consistent system. How much this bugs you probably depends on how
much time you spend around normal algebra.
AppleScript ain't algebra and, to be totally honest, I'd rather AS
development time be spent on almost anything else than "fixing" > this...
Yes, and I said as much previously.
--Chris Nebel
Apple Development Tools
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