Add methods negate() / reciprocal() to the FieldElement interface
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Key: MATH-686
URL: https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/MATH-686
Project: Commons Math
Issue Type: New Feature
Reporter: Sébastien Brisard
Priority: Trivial
Fix For: 3.0
As discussed on the mailing list, it is proposed to add two methods to the
{{FieldElement}} interface
* {{negate()}} : returns the additive inverse of {{this}} element.
* {{reciprocal()}} : returns the multiplicative inverse of {{this}} element.
Several name couples have been proposed by Phil
# {{negate}}, {{invert}}
# {{opposite}}, {{reciprocal}}
# {{additiveInverse}}, {{multiplicativeInverse}}
Looking at the classes implementing this interface in the core CM library, we
find that
* {{Complex}}, {{Dfp}}, {{BigFraction}} and {{Fraction}} already have a
{{negate()}} method.
* Besides, {{BigFraction}} and {{Fraction}} already have a {{reciprocal()}}
method.
So the best naming option would seem to be (for the time being) a mixture of
what Phil proposed. I realize it's not completely satisfactory because one is a
noun and one a verb. However that's what would induce the least changes to the
CM library. As a second step, it will be easier to change consistently the
names of all classes implementing {{FieldElement}}.
So I propose to introduce {{negate()}} and {{reciprocal()}} in the
{{FieldElement}} interface.
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