Operator Precedence: A Long-Time Form of Discrimination


Operator precedence has been a long-time form of discrimination.  This bias is so ingrained that if you’re under 35, you probably don’t even notice it.  But it’s there and has been around for at least 50 years.

You know what operator precedence means.  The equation a + b*c will calculate b*c first, then add a.  We take it for granted that 2 + 3*4 is 14.  But why not 20?  (Using the discriminatory operator precedence, (2 + 3)*4 = 20.) Logically, shouldn’t we simply proceed from left to right, performing operations as they occur?  That implies that we first add 2 to 3, then multiply the sum by 4.  But, no.  Operator precedence discrimination gives priority to multiplication and division.  (Actually, the first operation performed is exponentiation so 4*3^2 = 36, not 144 as it would in a bias-free world.)  Only after multiplication and division have been completed are addition and subtraction allowed.  What a terrible situation.

Several private schools also give importance to CTET certification. generic levitra usa The patient will be suggested to moderate consumption of viagra online in uk alcohol and quit smoking. * Work stress is another contributing factor to ED in men. Because of this, a very low blood may occur which is canada viagra sales absolutely unsafe for the fitness. 4. Stress on an emotional level is cialis canada caused by this. I appeal to everyone to eliminate this discrimination against the badly-treated + and *.  Let us overthrow the tyranny of operator precedence and return to a more logical realm.

(Note: for those who prefer right-to-left calculation, I support your efforts, too.)


About Tony Lima

Tony Lima has been working with technology, economic modeling, forecasting, and market research for 40 years. His background makes him uniquely qualified to navigate this varied landscape. Begin with his education: B.S. in chemical engineering from M.I.T. , M.B.A. from Harvard, Ph.D. in economics from Stanford. His day job was professor of economics at California State University, East Bay. He retired in 2016 to devote his time to consulting and writing. But he has found time to: write (eight books and over 100 articles ranging from wine economics to detailed analyses of meta-language code generators) consult with companies ranging from Microsoft to CEDEX keep his expertise up-to-date, constantly reading and sorting through the avalanche of information available daily maintain three blogs: Wine Research, Wine Economics, and Economic Policy Local policy analysis: Los Altos Politico.com

One Reply to “Operator Precedence: A Long-Time Form of Discrimination”

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