protected void assertSmaller(long a,long b){
  if (a >= b) {
    fail("a: " + a + " is not smaller than b: "+ b);
  }
}

protected void assertSmaller ( long a , long b ) { if ( a >= b ) { fail ( "a: " + a + " is not smaller than b: " + b ) ; } }
check if the first value is larger or equal than the second value , and if not throw an exception .
