> ... can calculate but sqlite can't: > ... select (\[humongous expression\]); ... (This reinforces RandomCoder's point:) It appears SQLite has no trouble calculating that expression. If I insert a "typeof" (sans quotes) between the select and the next left parenthesis, the result is 'null'. If you were to eliminate all subexpressions which evaluate to NaN (aka "not a number"), you would find that a number was calculated. SQLite treats NaNs as NULL, or you could think of it as Not-a-Value. P.S. Please note the spelling of SQLite.