Q. How codes represent data for scientific calculations?

How codes are in fact used to represent data for scientific calculations?

The computer is a discrete digital device and stores information in flip-flops that are two state devices means in binary form. Fundamental requirements of computational data representation in binary form are:

• Exponent
• Representation of Magnitude
• If number is fractional then decimal or binary point
• Representation of sign

The solution for sign representation is easy since sign can be either negative or positive hence one bit can be used to signify sign. By default it must be left most bit (in most of the machines it's Most Significant Bit).

Therefore a number of n bits can be represented as n+l bit number where n+l^th bit is sign bit and rest n bits signify its magnitude.

Figure: A (n  + 1) bit number