appmath 0.0.1

data/readme.txt

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+The Ruby-gem appmath (for applied mathematics)
+
+implements arbitrary precision mathematics in a form
+which is convenient to use. As a reality test of the
+underying ideas it applies this arbitrary precision 
+programming scheme to linear algebra (including 
+singular value decomposition and Penrose inverse
+of real matrices), graphical representation of functions,
+and physical simuations (2 dimensional Kepler motion).
+
+The origin and motivation of the work becomes clear 
+from the follwing note that I sent out to the 
+Ruby-Talk mailing list and which is placed in Ruby Forum 
+under the heading
+
+Proposing an arbitrary precision class building on 
+BigDecimal and being derived from Numeric.
+
+
+Dear Ruby commuity,
+
+this note deals with arbitrary precision arithmetics and Ruby
+module BigMath and Ruby class BigDecimal.
+
+So we are dealing with the mind children of Shigeo Kobayashi, and
+my first action in promoting my proposed addition to BigMath was
+to comunicate it to Shigeo.
+
+His reply ends in the sentences:
+
+'The only advice I can give you at this moment, is to annouce your
+excelent work to Ruby community(open to any user). 
+ ...
+I (and any Ruby user ) will be happy if your work is incorporated into
+the BigMath library.' 
+
+This work defines and tests a wrapper class for Shigeo's class BigDecimal.
+This wrapper makes the class fit into the framework of the standard Ruby
+number classes Fixnum, Bignum, and Float by having
+  Numeric
+as its base class. The name which I propose for this class is
+  R (which is standard mathematical usage),
+other names that I considered were 
+  Real, BigReal, BigR.
+
+The next unifying structural property of R ( besides R < Numeric) is that
+it implements as member functions all the mathematical functions
+  sqrt, hypot, sin, ... atan2, ... , erf, erfc
+which module Math implements for class Float.
+
+This is an interesting point: 
+Although in any OO-language terms containing calls of methods (member functions)
+are cleaner and easier to read than calls of non-member functions, actual
+language definitions prefer sin(x) to x.sin. Be this as it is, my class 
+R allows to write 
+  diff = x.sin**2 + x.cos**2 - 1 
+which is very small for, say, 
+  x = R.new("1.23456789E123")
+For this to work, one obviously needs to work with more than 
+the 123 decimals which come in already with the integer part of x.
+So, for this computation, the default value of 40 decimals is too small.
+We may set a sufficient accuracy by 
+  R.dig = 1000
+On my system (an off-the shelf laptop) it takes then 6.7 seconds
+to find diff.abs.log10.round as -876.
+
+Algorithms for these mathematical functions which are suitable for
+arbitrary precision are implemented in BigMath and BigDecimal based on
+everywhere convergent power series expansions. Although such expansions -
+take the well-knwn one for exp(x) as a prime example - converge by the 
+exponential growth of the denominators of the generic series term,
+the growth of x^n may dominate the result for many, many, terms in the
+early live of the series. So, such expansions are convergent rapidly only if
+|x| < 1. What I did was to figure out the mathematical identities that
+allow to reduce computing x.f for arbitrary x to fuction evalutions at
+auxiliar arguments y satisfying |y| < 1. What is needed here, hardly
+transcends the tricks which people of my generation had to exercise at school
+when working with logarithmic, exponential, and trigonometric functions
+by means of printed tables instead of pocket calclators.
+
+Of course, the question how to implement these functions by means of algorithms
+is independent of the question whether to use member functions or non-member
+functions in their definition. 
+However, the member function choice suggests a way of coping with 
+the number of allowed decimal places which is used in class R: 
+R has a class variable @@dig, the value of which (default is 40) controls the actual
+execution of any member function. It is not necessary to be aware of the fact that 
+'deep inside' Shigeo's powers series algorithms different numbers of decimal
+places may be used, according to the needs of the algorithm.
+
+This may suffice as a first presentation of class R.
+
+A complete package of Ruby code and rdoc-generated documentation can be found on
+(and freely downloaded from) 
+
+  www.ulrichmutze.de
+  
+where the section 
+  Free Ruby code
+is the one which matters.
+
+Every comment and suggestion for modification is wellcome!
+
+Especially those that help to relate the present proposal to other projects
+that add to he strength of Ruby as a tool in scientific computing.
+
+Presently my idea is to make R a part of BigMath (it is a part of my 
+module AppMath, applied mathematics, in my present implementation) and to 
+become informed about the expectations that users of the BigMath library
+may have concerning an arbitrary precision version of Float (which R in effect is).
+
+Ulrich
+
+Further, file rnum.rb of the present package contains a full description
+of the scope of this gem.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+ 
+
+
+
+

metadata

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+--- !ruby/object:Gem::Specification 
+name: appmath
+version: !ruby/object:Gem::Version 
+  version: 0.0.1
+platform: ruby
+authors: 
+- Ulrich Mutze
+autorequire: 
+bindir: bin
+cert_chain: []
+
+date: 2008-12-21 00:00:00 +01:00
+default_executable: 
+dependencies: []
+
+description: Arbitrary precision mathematics with application to real and complex linear algebra, graphical representation of functions, and 2D Kepler motion
+email: ulrichmutze@aol.com
+executables: 
+- rnum_app.rb
+- linalg_app.rb
+- kepler_2d_app.rb
+extensions: []
+
+extra_rdoc_files: []
+
+files: 
+- bin/rnum_app.rb
+- bin/linalg_app.rb
+- bin/kepler_2d_app.rb
+- lib/rnum.rb
+- lib/cnum.rb
+- lib/float_ext.rb
+- lib/appmath_basics.rb
+- lib/interval.rb
+- lib/graph.rb
+- lib/linalg.rb
+- lib/kepler_2d.rb
+- lib/random.rb
+- gpl-3.0.txt
+- readme.txt
+has_rdoc: true
+homepage: http://www.ulrichmutze.de
+post_install_message: 
+rdoc_options: 
+- -a
+- -N
+- -S
+- --title
+- Applied Mathematics API documentation
+require_paths: 
+- lib
+required_ruby_version: !ruby/object:Gem::Requirement 
+  requirements: 
+  - - ">="
+    - !ruby/object:Gem::Version 
+      version: "0"
+  version: 
+required_rubygems_version: !ruby/object:Gem::Requirement 
+  requirements: 
+  - - ">="
+    - !ruby/object:Gem::Version 
+      version: "0"
+  version: 
+requirements: []
+
+rubyforge_project: appmath
+rubygems_version: 1.3.1
+signing_key: 
+specification_version: 2
+summary: Arbitrary precision mathematics
+test_files: []
+