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lutusplast Thursday at 10:49 PM1 replyview on HN

Too bad -- the article doesn't mention Gauss. The Fourier transform is best presented to students in its original mathematical form, then coded in the FFT form. It also serves as a practical introduction to complex numbers.

As to the listed patent, it moves uncomfortably close to being a patent on mathematics, which isn't permitted. But I wouldn't be surprised to see many outstanding patents that have this hidden property.


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RossBencinayesterday at 8:00 AM

Pretty sure in the USA you can patent mathematics if it is an integral part of the realisation of a physical system.* There is a book "Math you Can't Use" that discusses this.

* not a legal definition, IANAL.

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