Mar. 25., 2008 | 06:19 pm
No:: electical
In mathematics, a caret can signify an exponent (3^5 for 35) where superscript is difficult or impossible (such as on some graphing calculators).
In programming languages the caret is used either to signify exponent, or to represent a bitwise XOR operator. The use of as exponent can be traced back to ALGOL 60, which expressed the exponentiation operator as an upward-pointing arrow, intended to evoke the superscript notation common in mathematics. The up-arrow character was codified as character 5E in the original 1963 version of the ASCII standard; however, this was a short-lived placement. The 1965 ECMA-6 standard replaced the up-arrow with the currently-used caret (and the left-arrow with the underscore); two years later, the second revision of ASCII followed suit, due to pressure from international standards committees requiring the character's presence as a diacritical mark (the circumflex). The caret is commonly used to signify control characters via caret notation.
In programming languages the caret is used either to signify exponent, or to represent a bitwise XOR operator. The use of as exponent can be traced back to ALGOL 60, which expressed the exponentiation operator as an upward-pointing arrow, intended to evoke the superscript notation common in mathematics. The up-arrow character was codified as character 5E in the original 1963 version of the ASCII standard; however, this was a short-lived placement. The 1965 ECMA-6 standard replaced the up-arrow with the currently-used caret (and the left-arrow with the underscore); two years later, the second revision of ASCII followed suit, due to pressure from international standards committees requiring the character's presence as a diacritical mark (the circumflex). The caret is commonly used to signify control characters via caret notation.