On the use of Small Calculators Having Stacked Registers
Lloyd A. Currie · Analytical Letters · 1973
The incorporation of an operational stack considerably enhances the potential of the small calculator. Full use of the stack permits calculations involving a stored constant or two or more intermediate results, but it requires careful planning and execution. Regardless of whether the calculator is “programmable,” an explicit instruction list, preferably written down, may contribute greatly to the rapidity and accuracy of such calculations. The “pop-up” feature of the stack is of particular interest, for it can be utilized to increase the permanent storage capacity. A comparison between conventional (memory) storage and stack storage is given, and examples are presented for the application of a calculator having a 4-register stack (plus 1 -memory register) to problems involving 2 parameters and/or summations, iterative solution of a transcendental equation, and recursion. Contribution of the National Bureau of Standards, not subject to copyright.