Path: csiph.com!x330-a1.tempe.blueboxinc.net!newsfeed.hal-mli.net!feeder1.hal-mli.net!news.linkpendium.com!news.linkpendium.com!panix!not-for-mail From: Grant Edwards Newsgroups: comp.lang.python Subject: Re: float("nan") in set or as key Date: Mon, 6 Jun 2011 13:54:28 +0000 (UTC) Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC Lines: 22 Message-ID: References: <4de75dd5$0$29983$c3e8da3$5496439d@news.astraweb.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: dsl.comtrol.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: reader1.panix.com 1307368468 1612 64.122.56.22 (6 Jun 2011 13:54:28 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse@panix.com NNTP-Posting-Date: Mon, 6 Jun 2011 13:54:28 +0000 (UTC) User-Agent: slrn/pre0.9.9-102 (Linux) Xref: x330-a1.tempe.blueboxinc.net comp.lang.python:7084 On 2011-06-03, Chris Torek wrote: >>> The definition is entirely arbitrary. >> >>I don't agree, but even if was entirely arbitrary, that doesn't make >>the decision meaningless. IEEE-754 says it's True, and standards >>compliance is valuable. Each country's decision to drive on the >>right/left side of the road is entire arbitrary, but once decided >>there's a huge benefit to everybody following the rule. > > This analogy perhaps works better than expected. Whenever I swap > between Oz or NZ and the US-of-A, I have a brief mental clash that, > if I am not careful, could result in various bad things. :-) I find that I do mostly OK driving "on the wrong side of the road" [except for the constant windshield/turn-signal mixups], but I have a horrible time as a pedestrian. -- Grant Edwards grant.b.edwards Yow! I had a lease on an at OEDIPUS COMPLEX back in gmail.com '81 ...