Many languages disagree on that rule (2 or 3 operators not worth factoring). Or rather, there are very many different approaches to this problem in various lang

Many languages disagree on that rule (2 or 3 operators not worth factoring). Or rather, there are very many different approaches to this problem in various languages. Take a look at Forth, APL, J and possibly Factor to see something radically different than anything you've ever seen (and yes, people do use these). Personally I find well-chosen names to help readability and may help avoid code duplication. There are 2 or 3 operator long things very much worth naming (see for example https://gist.github.com/piotrklibert/a0849f26523cad3d594e#file-refactoring-py-L44 https://gist.github.com/piotrklibert/a0849f26523cad3d594e#fi...). It's a style I call "modern literate," which tries to emulate "literate programming" without extra-language tools. Jeremy Ashkenas uses it in his works, most notably Underscore.js and Backbone.js: the code is simultaneously a manual and a tutorial. See: http://backbonejs.org/docs/backbone.html http://backbonejs.org/docs/backbone.html