Hack request: rational numbers

[Alex Martelli]

"Pearu Peterson" <pearu at cens.ioc.ee> wrote in message
news:Pine.LNX.4.21.0101251759070.28148-100000 at kev.ioc.ee...
    [snip]
> Python. Closest to the above representation I find
>
>     3r/4
>
> that uses similar syntax as in constructing Python complex numbers
> (cf. 3j+4).

What about r('3/4')?  Doesn't seem all that far off.  Or
r(3)/4.  These are easy, and just 2 characters (the parentheses)
away from your dream-syntax.

But there may be something better...

r3/4 would work if your module could have a __getattr__ (and if
you could reserve in your modules all variables of the form 'r\d+'),
as would 3/r4.  I suspect you stand a slightly better chance to
get some form of __getattr__ (and __setattr__) into modules, which
would be good for this & other uses, than specialized syntax for
rational numbers -- Moshe Zadka had urged me to write a PEP about
it (though I demurred when I found out that sys.modules CAN at
present house class-instances).


Alex