Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
Off-topic, but maybe as practical as "[making] your own Python build from altered source." --- Fortran 95 (and earlier versions) has single and double precision floats. One could write a Fortran code with variables declared REAL, and compilers will by default treat the REALs as single precision, but most compilers have an option to promote single precision variables to double. In Fortran 90+ one can specify the KIND of a REAL, so if variables as REAL (kind=rp) :: x,y,z throughout the code with rp being a global parameter, and one can switch from single to double by changing rp from 4 to 8. G95 is a good, free compiler. F95 has most but not all of the array operations of NumPy. -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
On 2007-05-10, Ross Ridge <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Grant Edwards <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >>In the C implementations, the algorithms will be done >>implemented in single precision, so doing my Python prototyping >>in as close to single precision as possible would be "a good >>thing". > > Something like numpy might give you reproducable IEEE 32-bit > floating point arithmetic, but you may find it difficult to > get that out of a IA-32 C compiler. That's OK, I don't run the C code on an IA32. The C target is a Hitachi H8/300. > (You might also want to consider whether you want to using > single precision in your C code to begin with, on IA-32 CPUs > it seldom makes a difference in performance.) Since I'm running the C code on a processor without HW floating point support, using single precision makes a big difference. -- Grant Edwards grante Yow! I have many CHARTS at and DIAGRAMS.. visi.com -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
On May 9, 6:51 pm, Grant Edwards <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Is there any way to do single-precision floating point > calculations in Python? Yes, use numpy.float32 objects. > I know the various array modules generally support arrays of > single-precision floats. I suppose I could turn all my > variables into single-element arrays, but that would be way > ugly... Numpy has scalars as well. >>> import numpy >>> a = numpy.float32(2.0) >>> b = numpy.float32(8.0) >>> c = a+b >>> print c 10.0 >>> type(c) >>> -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
Grant Edwards <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >In the C implementations, the algorithms will be done >implemented in single precision, so doing my Python prototyping >in as close to single precision as possible would be "a good >thing". Something like numpy might give you reproducable IEEE 32-bit floating point arithmetic, but you may find it difficult to get that out of a IA-32 C compiler. IA-32 compilers either set the x87 FPU's precision to either 64-bits or 80-bits and only round results down to 32-bits when storing values in memory. If you can target CPUs that support SSE, then compiler can use SSE math to do most single precision operations in single precision, although the compiler may not set the required SSE flags for full IEEE complaince. In other words, since you're probably going to have to allow for some small differences in results anyways, it may not be worth the trouble of trying to get Python to use 32-bit floats. (You might also want to consider whether you want to using single precision in your C code to begin with, on IA-32 CPUs it seldom makes a difference in performance.) Ross Ridge -- l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU [oo][oo] [EMAIL PROTECTED] -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca/~rridge/ db // -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
On 2007-05-09, Robert Kern <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Grant Edwards wrote: >> I'm pretty sure the answer is "no", but before I give up on the >> idea, I thought I'd ask... >> >> Is there any way to do single-precision floating point >> calculations in Python? >> >> I know the various array modules generally support arrays of >> single-precision floats. I suppose I could turn all my >> variables into single-element arrays, but that would be way >> ugly... > > We also have scalar types of varying precisions in numpy: > > In [9]: from numpy import * > > In [10]: float32(1.0) + float32(1e-8) == float32(1.0) > Out[10]: True Very interesting. Converting a few key variables and intermediate values to float32 and then back to CPython floats each time through the loop would probably be more than sufficient. So far as I know, I haven't run into any cases where the differences between 64-bit prototype calculations in Python and 32-bit production calculations in C have been significant. I certainly try to design the algorithms so that it won't make any difference, but it's a nagging worry... > In [11]: 1.0 + 1e-8 == 1.0 > Out[11]: False > > If you can afford to be slow, Yes, I can afford to be slow. I'm not sure I can afford the decrease in readability. > I believe there is an ASPN Python Cookbook recipe for > simulating floating point arithmetic of any precision. Thanks, I'll go take a look. -- Grant Edwards grante Yow! It's the RINSE at CYCLE!! They've ALL IGNORED visi.comthe RINSE CYCLE!! -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
On 2007-05-09, Terry Reedy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >| I'm pretty sure the answer is "no", but before I give up on the >| idea, I thought I'd ask... >| >| Is there any way to do single-precision floating point >| calculations in Python? > > Make your own Python build from altered source. And run it on > an ancient processor/OS/C compiler combination that does not > automatically convert C floats to double when doing any sort > of calculation. It wouldn't have to be that ancient. The current version of gcc supports 32-bit doubles on quite a few platforms -- though it doesn't seem to for IA32 :/ Simply storing intermediate and final results as single-precision floats would probably be sufficient. > Standard CPython does not have C single-precision floats. I know. > The only point I can think of for doing this with single numbers, as > opposed to arrays of millions, is to show that there is no point. I use Python to test algorithms before implementing them in C. It's far, far easier to do experimentation/prototyping in Python than in C. I also like to have two sort-of independent implementations to test against each other (it's a good way to catch typos). In the C implementations, the algorithms will be done implemented in single precision, so doing my Python prototyping in as close to single precision as possible would be "a good thing". > Or do you have something else in mind? -- Grant Edwards grante Yow! Yow! Is my fallout at shelter termite proof? visi.com -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
Grant Edwards wrote: > I'm pretty sure the answer is "no", but before I give up on the > idea, I thought I'd ask... > > Is there any way to do single-precision floating point > calculations in Python? > > I know the various array modules generally support arrays of > single-precision floats. I suppose I could turn all my > variables into single-element arrays, but that would be way > ugly... We also have scalar types of varying precisions in numpy: In [9]: from numpy import * In [10]: float32(1.0) + float32(1e-8) == float32(1.0) Out[10]: True In [11]: 1.0 + 1e-8 == 1.0 Out[11]: False If you can afford to be slow, I believe there is an ASPN Python Cookbook recipe for simulating floating point arithmetic of any precision. -- Robert Kern "I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had an underlying truth." -- Umberto Eco -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Re: Single precision floating point calcs?
"Grant Edwards" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message news:[EMAIL PROTECTED] | I'm pretty sure the answer is "no", but before I give up on the | idea, I thought I'd ask... | Is there any way to do single-precision floating point | calculations in Python? Make your own Python build from altered source. And run it on an ancient processor/OS/C compiler combination that does not automatically convert C floats to double when doing any sort of calculation. Standard CPython does not have C single-precision floats. The only point I can think of for doing this with single numbers, as opposed to arrays of millions, is to show that there is no point. Or do you have something else in mind? Terry Jan Reedy -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
Single precision floating point calcs?
I'm pretty sure the answer is "no", but before I give up on the idea, I thought I'd ask... Is there any way to do single-precision floating point calculations in Python? I know the various array modules generally support arrays of single-precision floats. I suppose I could turn all my variables into single-element arrays, but that would be way ugly... -- Grant Edwards grante Yow! -- I have seen the at FUN -- visi.com -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
