Subject: rationalize not returning the simplest rational
From: Göran Weinholt <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 19 Jul 2013 13:18:41 +0200
List-Id: <debbugs-submit.debbugs.gnu.org>

Hello schemers,

the procedure (rationalize x1 x2) from (rnrs) takes a number x1 and
returns the simplest rational that doesn't differ from x1 by more than
x2. The implementation in guile has this behavior:

scheme@(guile-user)> (rationalize #e-0.67 1/4)
$1 = -2/3

The problem here is that -1/2 is simpler than -2/3 (since 1<2 and 2<3)
and it also doesn't differ from #e-0.67 by more than 1/4 (even though
the difference is larger than for -2/3, it is still less than 1/4). So
the result from the expression above should be -1/2.

Tested with Guile 2.0.9.40-824b-dirty.

Regards,

-- 
Göran Weinholt <[email-masked]>
"On your own and though you feel alone you are alive.
Don't you know it's just another day." -- You Are Alive, Fragma