To: J3                                                     J3/23-156
From: John Reid
Subject: IEEE_SCALB underflow interp
Date: 2023-June-08


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NUMBER: Fxx/xxx
TITLE: Underflow in IEEE_SCALB
KEYWORDS: Underflow, IEEE_SCALB
DEFECT TYPE: Erratum
STATUS: J3 consideration in progress
REFERENCES: N2213 (FDIS)

QUESTION:
If X * 2**I is too small to be represented with full accuracy, was it
intended that IEEE_SCALB(X,I) should return the representable number
having a magnitude nearest to ABS(2**I) and the same sign as X? For
example, if X is of IEEE real type with the value 2E-38, was it
intended that IEEE_SCALB(X,-1) should return the value 0.5?


ANSWER:
No, it was intend that it should return the representable number
having a magnitude nearest to ABS(X*2**I) and the same sign as X.
An edit is supplied.

The same error was made in Fortran 2018, in 17.11.33. It was equally
wrong there and should have been corrected in an interpretation.
Because the change is being made now, it should be recorded as a
difference from Fortran 2018. An edit is supplied.


EDITS to N2213:
In Introduction, Intrinsic modules bullet item. Add at the end
"The function IEEE_SCALB(X,I) from the intrinsic module IEEE_ARITHMETIC
has been corrected to return the representable number having a magnitude
nearest to ABS(X*2**I)  and the same sign as X if  X*2**I is too small
to be represented with full accuracy."

In 17.11.37 IEEE_SCALB (X, I), Result Value, Case (iii), change "|2^I|"
to  "|X \times 2^I|".


SUBMITTED BY: John Reid

HISTORY: 23-xxx   m230  Submitted

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