You can do a meaningful arithmetic with any real you're able to enter into the machine [0], and the tidbit they took the time to share makes sense even in that sort of restricted context.
[0] https://blog.acolyer.org/2020/10/02/toward-an-api-for-the-re...
Re:Arithmetic in Computer Hardware
by tialaramex on Saturday November 18, 2023 @05:45AM
(#38317926)
That's actually a really interesting piece of software, thanks for the link!
Floating point is just the integers wearing a funny hat. Fixed point is a different funny hat. The rationals are two integers in a trenchcoat.