A binary, 8-bit floating point number 0111 0010 is said to have a 4-bit mantissa and a 4-bit exponent. What is meant by the terms 'mantissa' and 'exponent'? What is the value of this 8-bit binary floating point number?

Take an example 8-bit floating point number of 0111 0010.The 'mantissa' of this floating point number are the most significant bits -- in this case, the first 4 bits -- which represent the value and sign of the number. Before affected by the exponent, the mantissa can be represented as 0.111.The 'exponent' denotes where to move the decimal point to obtain the value of the binary floating point number. As the example's exponent of 0010 translates to a positive 2, the decimal point in 0.111 "slides" 2 places to the right. This gives the value of 011.1.The value of the number is 3.5.