Can We Utilize the Cancellation of the Most Significant Digits?

TitleCan We Utilize the Cancellation of the Most Significant Digits?
Publication TypeTechnical Report
Year of Publication1992
AuthorsPan, V.
Other Numbers766
Abstract

If the sum of several positive and negative numbers has a small magnitude, relative to the magnitudes of the summands, then we show how to decrease the precision of the computation of this sum (without affecting the output precision). Furthermore, if the magnitude of the inner product of two vectors is small and if one of them is filled with "short" binary numbers, each represented with only a few bits, then we decrease the precision of the computation of such an inner product (without affecting the output precision), and we extend this result to the iterative improvement algorithm for a linear system of equations, whose coefficients are represented by "short" binary numbers. We achieve this by truncating both the least and the most significant digits of the operands, according to our new scheme of "backward binary segmentation."

URLhttp://www.icsi.berkeley.edu/pubs/techreports/tr-92-061.pdf
Bibliographic Notes

ICSI Technical Report TR-92-061

Abbreviated Authors

V. Pan

ICSI Publication Type

Technical Report