A note on base-2 logarithm computations

Abstract

The well-known methods of iteration used suitably can yield a more accurate and rapidly convergent computation for the values of many functions. One typical example is the base-2 logarithm-antilogarithm computation. Some recently proposed techniques are reviewed and compared with an iterative process for computation using a fixed number of iterations. It is shown that the latter yields improved accuracy and can be implemented either as a subroutine or as a hardwired peripheral device for, say, a minicomputer.