Problems with Numeric Protocols

  1. On top of AdditiveArithmetic , add a MultiplicativeArithmetic protocol that refines AdditiveArithmetic , and make Numeric refine MultiplicativeArithmetic . This would be a natural extension to AdditiveArithmetic , but the practical benefit of this is unclear.

First off, an obvious practical benefit is consistency: as it says, that’s the natural extension of AdditiveArithmetic.

Second, if you wait for practical applications all the time, you’ll only ever be disappointed when one emerges. Mathematicians have been devising unique ways of applying these rules for centuries, and some of them might want to use Swift.