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| ``Value of numerical tables''
by igor on 2005-02-23 12:44:31 |
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| I noticed this along with the similar cos and tan articles that contain only tables of values. Unfortunately, I must question the worth of such entries. Tables of values of mathematical functions used to be of great importance (they constitute a large part of the venerable Handbook of Mathematical Functions), but not anymore. Computer algorithms that evaluate these functions, often to desired accuracy, are of much greater importance now. See the discussion in
http://dlmf.nist.gov/about/publications/MKM-Lozier/node4.html
which is an article describing the Digital Library of Mathematical Functions (DLMF), which aims to be the Handbook's successor.
I think an entry describing some algorithms that allow computation of trigonometric functions to desired precision would be much more valuable.
At the very least, a table of numbers should be accompanied by discussion of precision, accuracy, and at least a reference to the method of computation that was used. |
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