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class method
Math.gamma
Math.gamma(x) → Float
math.c
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static VALUE
math_gamma(VALUE unused_obj, VALUE x)
{
static const double fact_table[] = {
/* fact(0) */ 1.0,
/* fact(1) */ 1.0,
/* fact(2) */ 2.0,
/* fact(3) */ 6.0,
/* fact(4) */ 24.0,
/* fact(5) */ 120.0,
/* fact(6) */ 720.0,
/* fact(7) */ 5040.0,
/* fact(8) */ 40320.0,
/* fact(9) */ 362880.0,
/* fact(10) */ 3628800.0,
/* fact(11) */ 39916800.0,
/* fact(12) */ 479001600.0,
/* fact(13) */ 6227020800.0,
/* fact(14) */ 87178291200.0,
/* fact(15) */ 1307674368000.0,
/* fact(16) */ 20922789888000.0,
/* fact(17) */ 355687428096000.0,
/* fact(18) */ 6402373705728000.0,
/* fact(19) */ 121645100408832000.0,
/* fact(20) */ 2432902008176640000.0,
/* fact(21) */ 51090942171709440000.0,
/* fact(22) */ 1124000727777607680000.0,
/* fact(23)=25852016738884976640000 needs 56bit mantissa which is
* impossible to represent exactly in IEEE 754 double which have
* 53bit mantissa. */
};
enum {NFACT_TABLE = numberof(fact_table)};
double d;
d = Get_Double(x);
/* check for domain error */
if (isinf(d)) {
if (signbit(d)) domain_error("gamma");
return DBL2NUM(HUGE_VAL);
}
if (d == 0.0) {
return signbit(d) ? DBL2NUM(-HUGE_VAL) : DBL2NUM(HUGE_VAL);
}
if (d == floor(d)) {
domain_check_min(d, 0.0, "gamma");
if (1.0 <= d && d <= (double)NFACT_TABLE) {
return DBL2NUM(fact_table[(int)d - 1]);
}
}
return DBL2NUM(tgamma(d));
}
Calculates the gamma function of x.
Note that gamma(n) is the same as fact(n-1) for integer n > 0. However gamma(n) returns float and can be an approximation.
Example
def fact(n) (1..n).inject(1) {|r,i| r*i } end 1.upto(26) {|i| p [i, Math.gamma(i), fact(i-1)] } #=> [1, 1.0, 1] # [2, 1.0, 1] # [3, 2.0, 2] # [4, 6.0, 6] # [5, 24.0, 24] # [6, 120.0, 120] # [7, 720.0, 720] # [8, 5040.0, 5040] # [9, 40320.0, 40320] # [10, 362880.0, 362880] # [11, 3628800.0, 3628800] # [12, 39916800.0, 39916800] # [13, 479001600.0, 479001600] # [14, 6227020800.0, 6227020800] # [15, 87178291200.0, 87178291200] # [16, 1307674368000.0, 1307674368000] # [17, 20922789888000.0, 20922789888000] # [18, 355687428096000.0, 355687428096000] # [19, 6.402373705728e+15, 6402373705728000] # [20, 1.21645100408832e+17, 121645100408832000] # [21, 2.43290200817664e+18, 2432902008176640000] # [22, 5.109094217170944e+19, 51090942171709440000] # [23, 1.1240007277776077e+21, 1124000727777607680000] # [24, 2.5852016738885062e+22, 25852016738884976640000] # [25, 6.204484017332391e+23, 620448401733239439360000] # [26, 1.5511210043330954e+25, 15511210043330985984000000]