How to Perform Arithmetic Operations on Java\'s `java.lang.Number` Objects?

Arithmetic Operations on java.lang.Numbers

Java provides the Number class as a superclass for numeric types. However, arithmetic operations are not directly supported on Numbers due to the lack of type information. This is because the computer cannot determine the appropriate handling of values if it does not know whether they are integers, floats, or other types.

To add two Numbers in Java, you must first convert them to a specific numeric type. The most straightforward approach is to cast them to integers or floats:

<code class="java">Integer c = a.intValue() + b.intValue();
Float c = a.floatValue() + b.floatValue();</code>

Alternatively, you can use BigDecimal to perform more precise arithmetic operations:

<code class="java">BigDecimal c = new BigDecimal(a.floatValue()).add(new BigDecimal(b.floatValue()));</code>

BigDecimal ensures high precision by representing numbers as arbitrary-precision decimals. However, it may incur a slight performance penalty compared to using integers or floats.

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