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Arithmetic Underflow
The term arithmetic underflow (also floating point underflow, or just underflow) is a condition in a computer program where the result of a calculation is a number of more precise absolute value than the computer can actually represent in memory on its central processing unit (CPU). Arithmetic underflow can occur when the true result of a floating point operation is smaller in magnitude (that is, closer to zero) than the smallest value representable as a normal floating point number in the target datatype. Underflow can in part be regarded as negative overflow of the exponent of the floating point value. For example, if the exponent part can represent values from −128 to 127, then a result with a value less than −128 may cause underflow. Storing values that are too low in an integer variable (e.g., attempting to store −1 in an unsigned integer) is properly referred to as integer , or more broadly, ''integer wraparound''. The term ''underflow'' normally refe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Computer Program
A computer program is a sequence or set of instructions in a programming language for a computer to execute. Computer programs are one component of software, which also includes documentation and other intangible components. A computer program in its human-readable form is called source code. Source code needs another computer program to execute because computers can only execute their native machine instructions. Therefore, source code may be translated to machine instructions using the language's compiler. (Assembly language programs are translated using an assembler.) The resulting file is called an executable. Alternatively, source code may execute within the language's interpreter. If the executable is requested for execution, then the operating system loads it into memory and starts a process. The central processing unit will soon switch to this process so it can fetch, decode, and then execute each machine instruction. If the source code is requested for e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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IEEE 754
The IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic (IEEE 754) is a technical standard for floating-point arithmetic established in 1985 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The standard addressed many problems found in the diverse floating-point implementations that made them difficult to use reliably and portably. Many hardware floating-point units use the IEEE 754 standard. The standard defines: * ''arithmetic formats:'' sets of binary and decimal floating-point data, which consist of finite numbers (including signed zeros and subnormal numbers), infinities, and special "not a number" values (NaNs) * ''interchange formats:'' encodings (bit strings) that may be used to exchange floating-point data in an efficient and compact form * ''rounding rules:'' properties to be satisfied when rounding numbers during arithmetic and conversions * ''operations:'' arithmetic and other operations (such as trigonometric functions) on arithmetic formats * ''excepti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Machine Epsilon
Machine epsilon or machine precision is an upper bound on the relative approximation error due to rounding in floating point arithmetic. This value characterizes computer arithmetic in the field of numerical analysis, and by extension in the subject of computational science. The quantity is also called macheps and it has the symbols Greek epsilon \varepsilon. There are two prevailing definitions. In numerical analysis, machine epsilon is dependent on the type of rounding used and is also called unit roundoff, which has the symbol bold Roman u. However, by a less formal, but more widely-used definition, machine epsilon is independent of rounding method and may be equivalent to u or 2u. Values for standard hardware arithmetics The following table lists machine epsilon values for standard floating-point formats. Each format uses round-to-nearest. Formal definition ''Rounding'' is a procedure for choosing the representation of a real number in a floating point number syst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Logarithmic Number System
A logarithmic number system (LNS) is an arithmetic system used for representing real numbers in computer and digital hardware, especially for digital signal processing. Overview In an LNS, a number, X, is represented by the logarithm, x, of its absolute value as follows: :X\rightarrow\, where s is a bit denoting the sign of X (s=0 if X>0 and s=1 if X A VHDL library for LNS hardware generation Computer arithmetic Digital signal processing [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Integer Overflow
In computer programming, an integer overflow occurs when an arithmetic operation attempts to create a numeric value that is outside of the range that can be represented with a given number of digits – either higher than the maximum or lower than the minimum representable value. The most common result of an overflow is that the least significant representable digits of the result are stored; the result is said to ''wrap'' around the maximum (i.e. modulo a power of the radix, usually two in modern computers, but sometimes ten or another radix). An overflow condition may give results leading to unintended behavior. In particular, if the possibility has not been anticipated, overflow can compromise a program's reliability and security. For some applications, such as timers and clocks, wrapping on overflow can be desirable. The C11 standard states that for unsigned integers, modulo wrapping is the defined behavior and the term overflow never applies: "a computation involving un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Denormal Number
In computer science, subnormal numbers are the subset of denormalized numbers (sometimes called denormals) that fill the underflow gap around zero in floating-point arithmetic. Any non-zero number with magnitude smaller than the smallest normal number is ''subnormal''. :: ''Usage note: in some older documents (especially standards documents such as the initial releases of IEEE 754 and the C language), "denormal" is used to refer exclusively to subnormal numbers. This usage persists in various standards documents, especially when discussing hardware that is incapable of representing any other denormalized numbers, but the discussion here uses the term subnormal in line with the 2008 revision of IEEE 754.'' In a normal floating-point value, there are no leading zeros in the significand ( mantissa); rather, leading zeros are removed by adjusting the exponent (for example, the number 0.0123 would be written as ). Conversely, a denormalized floating point value has a significand wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Trap (computing)
In digital computers, an interrupt (sometimes referred to as a trap) is a request for the processor to ''interrupt'' currently executing code (when permitted), so that the event can be processed in a timely manner. If the request is accepted, the processor will suspend its current activities, save its state, and execute a function called an ''interrupt handler'' (or an ''interrupt service routine'', ISR) to deal with the event. This interruption is often temporary, allowing the software to resume normal activities after the interrupt handler finishes, although the interrupt could instead indicate a fatal error. Interrupts are commonly used by hardware devices to indicate electronic or physical state changes that require time-sensitive attention. Interrupts are also commonly used to implement computer multitasking, especially in real-time computing. Systems that use interrupts in these ways are said to be interrupt-driven. Types Interrupt signals may be issued in response to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Significand
The significand (also mantissa or coefficient, sometimes also argument, or ambiguously fraction or characteristic) is part of a number in scientific notation or in floating-point representation, consisting of its significant digits. Depending on the interpretation of the exponent, the significand may represent an integer or a fraction. Example The number 123.45 can be represented as a decimal floating-point number with the integer 12345 as the significand and a 10−2 power term, also called characteristics, where −2 is the exponent (and 10 is the base). Its value is given by the following arithmetic: : 123.45 = 12345 × 10−2. The same value can also be represented in normalized form with 1.2345 as the fractional coefficient, and +2 as the exponent (and 10 as the base): : 123.45 = 1.2345 × 10+2. Schmid, however, called this representation with a significand ranging between 1.0 and 10 a modified normalized form. For base 2, this 1.xxxx form is also called a normalize ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Machine Epsilon
Machine epsilon or machine precision is an upper bound on the relative approximation error due to rounding in floating point arithmetic. This value characterizes computer arithmetic in the field of numerical analysis, and by extension in the subject of computational science. The quantity is also called macheps and it has the symbols Greek epsilon \varepsilon. There are two prevailing definitions. In numerical analysis, machine epsilon is dependent on the type of rounding used and is also called unit roundoff, which has the symbol bold Roman u. However, by a less formal, but more widely-used definition, machine epsilon is independent of rounding method and may be equivalent to u or 2u. Values for standard hardware arithmetics The following table lists machine epsilon values for standard floating-point formats. Each format uses round-to-nearest. Formal definition ''Rounding'' is a procedure for choosing the representation of a real number in a floating point number syst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Subnormal Numbers
In computer science, subnormal numbers are the subset of denormalized numbers (sometimes called denormals) that fill the underflow gap around zero in floating-point arithmetic. Any non-zero number with magnitude smaller than the smallest normal number is ''subnormal''. :: ''Usage note: in some older documents (especially standards documents such as the initial releases of IEEE 754 and the C language), "denormal" is used to refer exclusively to subnormal numbers. This usage persists in various standards documents, especially when discussing hardware that is incapable of representing any other denormalized numbers, but the discussion here uses the term subnormal in line with the 2008 revision of IEEE 754.'' In a normal floating-point value, there are no leading zeros in the significand ( mantissa); rather, leading zeros are removed by adjusting the exponent (for example, the number 0.0123 would be written as ). Conversely, a denormalized floating point value has a significand with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Infinity
Infinity is that which is boundless, endless, or larger than any natural number. It is often denoted by the infinity symbol . Since the time of the ancient Greeks, the philosophical nature of infinity was the subject of many discussions among philosophers. In the 17th century, with the introduction of the infinity symbol and the infinitesimal calculus, mathematicians began to work with infinite series and what some mathematicians (including l'Hôpital and Bernoulli) regarded as infinitely small quantities, but infinity continued to be associated with endless processes. As mathematicians struggled with the foundation of calculus, it remained unclear whether infinity could be considered as a number or magnitude and, if so, how this could be done. At the end of the 19th century, Georg Cantor enlarged the mathematical study of infinity by studying infinite sets and infinite numbers, showing that they can be of various sizes. For example, if a line is viewed as the set of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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Computer Memory
In computing, memory is a device or system that is used to store information for immediate use in a computer or related computer hardware and digital electronic devices. The term ''memory'' is often synonymous with the term '' primary storage'' or ''main memory''. An archaic synonym for memory is store. Computer memory operates at a high speed compared to storage that is slower but less expensive and higher in capacity. Besides storing opened programs, computer memory serves as disk cache and write buffer to improve both reading and writing performance. Operating systems borrow RAM capacity for caching so long as not needed by running software. If needed, contents of the computer memory can be transferred to storage; a common way of doing this is through a memory management technique called '' virtual memory''. Modern memory is implemented as semiconductor memory, where data is stored within memory cells built from MOS transistors and other components on an integrated circ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |