Arithmetic

Operators

Vision's five arithmetic operators, written in words:

the total is the price plus the tax
the change is the paid minus the total
the area is the width times the height
the average is the sum divided by the count
the volume is the side to the power of 3

plus · minus · times · divided by · to the power of

The grouping law

When you mix two different arithmetic operations on a single line, Vision requires you to use parentheses to make the order explicit. The compiler refuses to proceed until you do.

// These won't compile — Vision requires you to group mixed operations:
a plus b times c
x minus y divided by z

// Correct: the grouping is on the page
a plus (b times c)
x minus (y divided by z)

This applies to any mixture of operations: plus with times, minus with divided by, and so on. Chaining the same operation (a plus b plus c) is fine — no grouping needed.

Math functions

Common math operations use plain English phrases. No import required.

the root is the square root of 9.0
the limit is keep score between 0 and 100
the rounded is the whole part of 3.7    // gives 3
the bigger is the larger of a, b
the smallest is the smallest of x, y, z

Available:

• the square root of x
• the tangent of x
• the hyperbolic tangent of x
• the larger of a, b
• the smaller of a, b
• the largest of a, b, c, …
• the smallest of a, b, c, …
• keep x between low and high — clamps x to the range
• the whole part of x — rounds down to a whole number

Why grouping matters

In C and most of its descendants, a + b * c silently means a + (b * c) because * has higher precedence than +. The rule is in the spec, not on the page. A reader who forgets it — or who comes from a language with different rules — sees a value that is quietly wrong.

Vision refuses to compile ambiguous expressions. The order is always written down, always visible, always exactly what it appears to be. A wrong calculation cannot hide behind a precedence rule nobody remembered.