Ronald T. Kneusel – författare

This textbook details the variety of number formats used by computers, thereby helping to ground readers in what can and cannot be represented accurately, especially by floating-point numbers.

The book''s first part details standard representations of integers and floating-point numbers.  The second explores other number representations, including the wide variety recently developed to support artificial intelligence (AI) and its demand for efficiency in representation to accommodate the ever-expanding scope of neural network models.  Chapters describe each format, with examples in code (Python and C) and exercises.  This new edition includes three new chapters on posits, AI number formats, and a collaborative experiment with an AI to generate novel number formats.

Topics and features:

A textbook eminently suitable for undergraduates in computer science, the work also will appeal to software developers, engineers, scientists, AI experts, and anyone who programs for fun.

This is a book about numbers and how those numbers are represented in and operated on by computers. It is crucial that developers understand this area because the numerical operations allowed by computers, and the limitations of those operations, especially in the area of floating point math, affect virtually everything people try to do with computers. This book aims to fill this gap by exploring, in sufficient but not overwhelming detail, just what it is that computers do with numbers.

Divided into two parts, the first deals with standard representations of integers and floating point numbers, while the second details several other number representations. Each chapter ends with exercises to review the key points. Topics covered include interval arithmetic, fixed-point numbers, floating point numbers, big integers and rational arithmetic.

This book is for anyone who develops software including software engineerings, scientists, computer science students, engineering students and anyone who programs for fun.

This is a book about numbers and how those numbers are represented in and operated on by computers. It is crucial that developers understand this area because the numerical operations allowed by computers, and the limitations of those operations, especially in the area of floating point math, affect virtually everything people try to do with computers. This book aims to fill this gap by exploring, in sufficient but not overwhelming detail, just what it is that computers do with numbers.  

Divided into two parts, the first deals with standard representations of integers and floating point numbers, while the second examines several other number representations. Details are explained thoroughly, with clarity and specificity. Each chapter ends with a summary, recommendations, carefully selected references, and exercises to review the key points. Topics covered include interval arithmetic, fixed-point numbers, big integers and rational arithmetic. This new edition has three new chapters: Pitfalls of Floating-Point Numbers (and How to Avoid Them), Arbitrary Precision Floating Point, and Other Number Systems.

This book is for anyone who develops software including software engineers, scientists, computer science students, engineering students and anyone who programs for fun.

 The first comprehensive book on the topic, readers are provided with a practical introduction to the techniques of pseudorandom number generation, including how the algorithms work and how to test the output to decide if it is suitable for a particular purpose.  

 Practical applications are demonstrated with hands-on presentation and descriptions that readers can apply directly to their own work. Examples are in C and Python and given with an emphasis on understanding the algorithms to the point of practical application. The examples are meant to be implemented, experimented with and improved/adapted by the reader.