To: J3                                                     J3/26-115r1
From:      Peter Klausler <pklausler@nvidia.com>
Subject:   F2023 interp: Integrity of parentheses in (A*B)
Date: 2026-February-05

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NUMBER: F23/ ! /interp assigns number after submission
TITLE: Integrity of parentheses in (A*B)
KEYWORDS:  Expression evaluation, parentheses
DEFECT TYPE: ! /interp assigns
STATUS: J3 consideration in progress

QUESTIONS:

Q1:
In 24-0007 subclause 10.1.5.2.4 ("Evaluation of numeric intrinsic
operations") paragraph 2, the text reads "Once the interpretation of a
numeric intrinsic operation is established, the processor may evaluate
any mathematically equivalent expression, provided that the integrity
of parentheses is not violated."

Does the phrase "provided that the integrity of parentheses is not
violated" apply to an intrinsic multiplication that is enclosed in
explicit parentheses, such as "(A*B)", where the operands are data
entities whose type is intrinsic REAL?

ANSWER: Yes; a conforming processor may not violate the integrity of
parentheses in a parenthesized real intrinsic multiplication.

Q2:
In 10.1.8 ("Integrity of parentheses") the text reads "The rules for
evaluation specified in 10.1.5 state certain conditions under which a
processor can evaluate an expression that is different from the one
specified by applying the rules given in 10.1.2 and the rules for
interpretation specified in 10.1.5. However, any expression in
parentheses shall be treated as a data entity."

Does the last sentence apply to a parenthesized real intrinsic
multiplication, requiring that it be treated as a "data entity"?

ANSWER: Yes; a conforming processor must treat a parenthesized
real intrinsic multiplication as a data entity.

Q3:
In 3.41 "data entity", that term is defined as "data object (3.42),
result of the evaluation of an expression, or the result of the
execution of a function reference".

If a parenthesized real intrinsic multiplication is a data entity,
being the result of the evaluation of an expression, does that data
entity have the type, kind, and value of the result of the
multiplication, as defined by subclause 10.1.5?

ANSWER: Yes, the result of the evaluation of the real intrinsic
multiplication expression "A*B" is a data entity whose type, kind,
and value are defined in subclause 10.1.5.

Q4:
When an explicitly parenthesized real intrinsic multiplication
appears as an operand in an expression, as in "(A*B)+C", does
the parenthesized multiplication have the type, kind, and value
of the data entity that 10.1.8 ("Integrity of parentheses") requires
that it "shall be treated as"?

ANSWER: Yes.

EDITS to 24-007:

None, if all four answers are "Yes".  If any answer is "No", edits
may be required to clarify the reasoning behind the answer.

SUBMITTED BY: Peter Klausler

HISTORY: 26-nnn    m239  Submitted