This summer, battle lines were drawn over a simple math problem: 8 ÷ 2(2 + 2) = ? If you divide 8 by 2 first, you get 16, but if you multiply 2 by (2 + 2) first, you get 1. So, which answer is right?

This Design Idea presents a method for fast integer multiplying and multiplying by fractions. What can you do when you lack access to a hardware multiplier or MAC (multiply/accumulate) function and ...

Computer scientists are a demanding bunch. For them, it’s not enough to get the right answer to a problem — the goal, almost always, is to get the answer as efficiently as possible. Take the act of ...