Hierarchy of Operations

While executing an arithmetic statement, which has two or more operators, we may have some problems as to how exactly does it get executed. For example, does the expression 2 * x - 3 * y correspond to (2x)-(3y) or to 2(x-3y)? Similarly, does A / B * C correspond to A / (B * C) or to (A / B) * C? To answer these questions satisfactorily one has to understand the ‘hierarchy’ of operations. The priority or precedence in which the operations in
an arithmetic statement are performed is called the hierarchy of operations. The hierarchy of commonly used operators is shown in Priority.
Operators
Description
1st * / %
multiplication, division, modular division
2nd + -
addition, subtraction
3rd =
assignment

Now a few tips about usage of operators in general.
1.Within parentheses the same hierarchy as mentioned in Figure 1.11 is operative. Also, if there are more than one set of parentheses, the operations within the innermost parentheses would be performed first, followed by the operations within the second innermost pair and so on.
2.We must always remember to use pairs of parentheses. A careless imbalance of the right and left parentheses is a common error. Best way to avoid this error is to type ( ) and then type an expression inside it.

Associativity of Operators
When an expression contains two operators of equal priority the tie between them is settled using the associativity of the operators. Associativity can be of two types—Left to Right or Right to Left. Left to Right associativity means that the left operand must be unambiguous. It must not be involved in evaluation of any other sub-expression. Similarly, in case of Right to Left associativity the right operand must be unambiguous. Let us understand this with an example.

Consider the expression
a = 3 / 2 * 5 ;
Here there is a tie between operators of same priority, that is between / and *. This tie is settled using the associativity of / and *. But both enjoy Left to Right associativity

Control Instructions in C
As the name suggests the ‘Control Instructions’ enable us to specify the order in which the various instructions in a program are to be executed by the computer. In other words the control instructions determine the ‘flow of control’ in a program. There are four types of control instructions in C. They are:
(a) Sequence Control Instruction
(b) Selection or Decision Control Instruction
(c) Repetition or Loop Control Instruction
(d) Case Control Instruction
The Sequence control instruction ensures that the instructions are executed in the same order in which they appear in the program. Decision and Case control instructions allow the computer to take a decision as to which instruction is to be executed next. The Loop control instruction helps computer to execute a group of statements repeatedly.