What are bitwise shift operations in C?

Can you explain what bitwise shift operations are in C?

Sure! Bitwise shift operations in C are used to shift the bits of a number left or right. They are represented by the operators '<<' for left shift and '>>' for right shift.

What does a left shift operation do?

A left shift operation '<<' shifts all bits in a number to the left by a specified number of positions, effectively multiplying the number by 2 for each shift.

And what about the right shift operation?

The right shift operation '>>' shifts all bits to the right, which divides the number by 2 for each shift, discarding any bits that fall off.

Can you give me an example of both operations?

Of course! For example, if you have the number 4 (which is 00000100 in binary) and you perform a left shift by 1, it becomes 00001000, which is 8. A right shift by 1 would turn 4 into 00000010, which is 2.