On Tuesday 07 June 2005 22:35, Sam Vilain wrote:
> Let's look at the type of one of the many `reduce' variants in
> Haskell;
>
> foldr1 :: (a -> a -> a) -> [a] -> a
>
> This is the Perl6ish;
>
> sub reduce( ::Code{( ::(someType), ::(someType) ) returns
> ::(someType)} $func, Array of ::(someType) ) returns
> ::(someType);
>
> ie, the function $func supplied must take and return arguments
> of a single type. So you have come to the same conclusion as
> the FP folk :-).
I agree with that from the APL, J, Haskell, and FP directions and
several more.
That means that we have to straighten out the functions that can
return either a Boolean or an item of the argument type.
Comparison functions < > <= >= = != should return only Booleans,
IMHO, and the same for the string functions lt and gt and the
rest. It also means that we need primitive functions (operators)
like max and min that only return one of the arguments, and that
can also be used with a reduction operator (metaoperator).
--
Edward Cherlin
Generalist & activist--Linux, languages, literacy and more
"A knot! Oh, do let me help to undo it!"
--Alice in Wonderland
http://cherlin.blogspot.com
