The Functional Programming Triad of Folding, Scanning and Iteration - a first example in Scala and Haskell - Polyglot FP for Fun and Profit

fold
λ
The Func%onal Programming Triad of Folding, Scanning and Itera%on
a ﬁrst example in Scala and Haskell
Polyglot FP for Fun and Proﬁt
@philip_schwarz
slides by
h"ps://www.slideshare.net/pjschwarz
Richard Bird
Sergei Winitzki
sergei-winitzki-11a6431
http://www.cs.ox.ac.uk/people/richard.bird/

This slide deck can work both as an aide mémoire (memory jogger), or as a first (not
completely trivial) example of using le/ folds, le/ scans and itera5on to implement
mathema5cal induc5on.
We first look at the implementaAon, using a le/ fold, of a digits-to-int funcAon
that converts a sequence of digits into a whole number.
Then we look at the implementaAon, using the iterate funcAon, of an int-to-
digits funcAon that converts an integer into a sequence of digits. In Scala this
funcAon is very readable because the signatures of funcAons provided by collec5ons
permit the piping of such funcAons with zero syntac5c overhead. In Haskell, there is
some syntac5c sugar that can be used to achieve the same readability, so we look at
how that works.
We then set ourselves a simple task involving digits-to-int and int-to-digits,
and write a funcAon whose logic can be simplified with the introducAon of a le/ scan.
Let’s begin, on the next slide, by looking at how Richard Bird describes the digits-
to-int funcAon, which he calls 𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑙.
@philip_schwarz

Suppose we want a funcAon decimal that takes a list of digits and returns the corresponding decimal number;
thus
𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑙 [𝑥0, 𝑥1, … , 𝑥n] = ∑!"#
$
𝑥 𝑘10($&!)
It is assumed that the most significant digit comes first in the list. One way to compute decimal efficiently is by a
process of mulAplying each digit by ten and adding in the following digit. For example
𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = 10 × 10 × 10 × 0 + 𝑥0 + 𝑥1 + 𝑥2
This decomposiAon of a sum of powers is known as Horner’s rule.
Suppose we define ⊕ by 𝑛 ⊕ 𝑥 = 10 × 𝑛 + 𝑥. Then we can rephrase the above equaAon as
𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = (0 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1 ⊕ 𝑥2
This example moAvates the introducAon of a second fold operator called 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 (pronounced ‘fold leM’).
Informally:
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, … , 𝑥𝑛 − 1 = … ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) … ⊕ 𝑥 𝑛 − 1
The parentheses group from the leM, which is the reason for the name. The full definiAon of 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 is
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 = 𝑒
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 = 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 𝑓 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥 𝑥𝑠
Richard Bird

On the next slide we look at how Sergei
Winitzki describes the digits-to-int
funcAon, and how he implements it in Scala.

Example 2.2.5.3 Implement the funcAon digits-to-int using foldLeft.
…
The required computaAon can be wriTen as the formula
𝑟 = @
!"#
$&(
𝑑 𝑘 ∗ 10$&(&!.
…
Solu5on The induc5ve deﬁni5on of digitsToInt
• For an empty sequence of digits, Seq(), the result is 0. This is a convenient base case, even if we never call
digitsToInt on an empty sequence.
• If digitsToInt(xs) is already known for a sequence xs of digits, and we have a sequence xs :+ x with one
more digit x, then
is directly translated into code:
def digitsToInt(d: Seq[Int]): Int = d.foldLeft(0){ (n, x) => n * 10 + x }
Sergei Winitzki

(⊕) :: Int -> Int -> Int
(⊕) n d = 10 * n + d
digits_to_int :: [Int] -> Int
digits_to_int = foldl (⊕) 0
def `(⊕)`(n: Int, d: Int): Int =
10 * n + d
def digitsToInt(xs: Seq[Int]): Int =
xs.foldLeft(0)(`(⊕)`)
assert( digitsToInt(List(5,3,7,4)) == 5374)
implicit class Sugar(m: Int){
def ⊕(n: Int) = `(⊕)`(m,n)
}
assert( (150 ⊕ 7) == 1507 )
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 + 0 1,2,3 = 6𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, … , 𝑥𝑛 = … ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) … ⊕ 𝑥 𝑛
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 𝑥1, 𝑥2
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 ⊕ 𝑥1 𝑥2
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ (( 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2) [ ]
= ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 0 1,2,3
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 0 ⊕ 1 2,3
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 0 ⊕ 1 ⊕ 2 3
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ (( 0 ⊕ 1 ⊕ 2) ⊕ 3) [ ]
= ((0 ⊕ 1) ⊕ 2) ⊕ 3
Here is a quick refresher on fold le/
So let’s implement the
digits-to-int funcAon
in Haskell.
And now in Scala.
𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑙 [𝑥0, 𝑥1, … , 𝑥n] = @
!"#
$
𝑥 𝑘10($&!)

Now we turn to int-to-digits, a funcAon that is the opposite of digits-to-int,
and one that can be implemented using the iterate funcAon.
In the next two slides, we look at how Sergei Winitzki describes digits-to-int
(which he calls digitsOf) and how he implements it in Scala.

2.3 Converting a single value into a sequence
An aggregation converts (“folds”) a sequence into a single value; the opposite operation (“unfolding”) converts a single value into
a sequence. An example of this task is to compute the sequence of decimal digits for a given integer:
def digitsOf(x: Int): Seq[Int] = ???
scala> digitsOf(2405)
res0: Seq[Int] = List(2, 4, 0, 5)
We cannot implement digitsOf using map, zip, or foldLeft, because these methods work only if we already have a sequence;
but the function digitsOf needs to create a new sequence.
…
To figure out the code for digitsOf, we first write this function as a mathematical formula. To compute the digits for, say, n =
2405, we need to divide n repeatedly by 10, getting a sequence nk of intermediate numbers (n0 = 2405, n1 = 240, ...) and the
corresponding sequence of last digits, nk mod 10 (in this example: 5, 0, ...). The sequence nk is defined using mathematical
induction:
• Base case: n0 = n, where n is the given initial integer.
• Inductive step: nk+1 =
nk
10 for k = 1, 2, ...
Here
nk
10 is the mathematical notation for the integer division by 10.
Let us tabulate the evaluation of the sequence nk for n = 2405:
The numbers nk will remain all zeros after k = 4. It is clear that the useful part of the sequence is before it becomes all zeros. In this
example, the sequence nk needs to be stopped at k = 4. The sequence of digits then becomes [5, 0, 4, 2], and we need to reverse it
to obtain [2, 4, 0, 5]. For reversing a sequence, the Scala library has the standard method reverse.
Sergei Winitzki

So, a complete implementa.on for digitsOf is:
def digitsOf(n: Int): Seq[Int] =
if (n == 0) Seq(0) else { // n == 0 is a special case.
Stream.iterate(n) { nk => nk / 10 }
.takeWhile { nk => nk != 0 }
.map { nk => nk % 10 }
.toList.reverse
}
We can shorten the code by using the syntax such as (_ % 10) instead of { nk => nk % 10 },
def digitsOf(n: Int): Seq[Int] =
if (n == 0) Seq(0) else { // n == 0 is a special case.
Stream.iterate(n) (_ / 10 )
.takeWhile ( _ != 0 )
.map ( _ % 10 )
.toList.reverse
}
Sergei Winitzki
The Scala library has a general stream-producing func8on Stream.iterate. This func8on has two arguments, the ini8al
value and a func8on that computes the next value from the previous one:
…
The type signature of the method Stream.iterate can be wri?en as
def iterate[A](init: A)(next: A => A): Stream[A]
and shows a close correspondence to a deﬁni8on by mathema8cal induc8on. The base case is the ﬁrst value, init, and
the induc8ve step is a func8on, next, that computes the next element from the previous one. It is a general way of
crea8ng sequences whose length is not determined in advance.

the prelude funcAon iterate returns an infinite list:
𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 ∷ 𝑎 → 𝑎 → 𝑎 → 𝑎
𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑥 ∶ 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑓 (𝑓 𝑥)
In parAcular, 𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 +1 1 is an infinite list of the posiAve integers, a value we can also
write as [1..].
Richard Bird
Here is how Richard Bird
describes the iterate funcAon
int_to_digits :: Int -> [Int]
int_to_digits n =
reverse (
map (n -> mod n 10) (
takeWhile (n -> n /= 0) (
iterate (n -> div n 10)
n
)
)
)
import LazyList.iterate
def intToDigits(n: Int): Seq[Int] =
iterate(n) (_ / 10 )
.map ( _ % 10 )
.toList
.reverse
Here on the leM I had a go at a Haskell implementaAon of the int-to-digits funcAon (we
are not handling cases like n=0 or negaAve n), and on the right, the same logic in Scala.
I find the Scala version slightly easier
to understand, because the funcAons
that we are calling appear in the order
in which they are executed. Contrast
that with the Haskell version, in which
the funcAon invocaAons occur in the
opposite order.

While the ‘ﬂuent’ chaining of funcAon calls on Scala collecAons is very convenient, when using other funcAons, we
face the same problem that we saw in Haskell on the previous slide. e.g. in the following code, square appears ﬁrst,
even though it is executed last, and vice versa for inc.
assert(square(twice(inc(3))) == 64)
assert ((3 pipe inc pipe twice pipe square) == 64)
To help a bit with that problem, in Scala
there is a pipe funcAon which is available
on all values, and which allows us to order
funcAon invocaAons in the ‘right’ order.
Armed with pipe, we can rewrite the code so that funcAon
names occur in the same order in which the funcAons are
invoked, which makes the code more understandable.
def inc(n: Int): Int = n + 1
def twice(n: Int): Int = n * 2
def square(n: Int): Int = n * n
3 pipe inc
pipe twice
pipe square
square(twice(inc(3))
@philip_schwarz

What about in Haskell? First of all, in Haskell there is a func8on applica8on
operator called $, which we can some.mes use to omit parentheses
Application operator. This operator is redundant, since ordinary application (f x)
means the same as (f $ x).
However, $ has low, right-associative binding precedence, so it sometimes allows
parentheses to be omitted; for example:
f $ g $ h x = f (g (h x))
int_to_digits n =
reverse (
map (n -> mod n 10) (
takeWhile (n -> n /= 0) (
iterate (n -> div n 10)
n
)
)
)
int_to_digits n =
reverse $ map (x -> mod x 10)
$ takeWhile (x -> x > 0)
$ iterate (x -> div x 10)
$ n
Armed with $, we can simplify our func.on as follows
simplify
For beginners, the $ oVen makes Haskell code more diﬃcult to
parse. In pracXce, the $ operator is used frequently, and you’ll
likely ﬁnd you prefer using it over many parentheses. There’s
nothing magical about $; if you look at its type signature, you
can see how it works:
($) :: (a -> b) -> a -> b
The arguments are just a funcXon and a value. The trick is
that $ is a binary operator, so it has lower precedence than the
other funcXons you’re using. Therefore, the argument for the
funcXon will be evaluated as though it were in parentheses.

But there is more we can do. In addiAon to the
func5on applica5on operator $, in Haskell there
is also a reverse func5on applica5on operator &.
hTps://www.fpcomplete.com/haskell/tutorial/operators/

int_to_digits n =
reverse $ map (x -> mod x 10)
$ takeWhile (x -> x > 0)
$ iterate (x -> div x 10)
$ n
int_to_digits s n =
n & iterate (x -> div x 10)
& takeWhile (x -> x > 0)
& map (x -> mod x 10)
& reverse
.map ( _ % 10 )
.toList
.reverse
Thanks to the & operator, we can rearrange our int_to_digits
funcAon so that it is as readable as the Scala version.

There is one school of thought according to which the choice of names for $ and & make
Haskell hard to read for newcomers, that it is beTer if $ and & are instead named |> and <|.
Flow provides operators for writing more understandable Haskell. It is an alternative to some
common idioms like ($) for function application and (.) for function composition.
…
Rationale
I think that Haskell can be hard to read. It has two operators for applying functions. Both are not
really necessary and only serve to reduce parentheses. But they make code hard to read. People
who do not already know Haskell have no chance of guessing what foo $ bar or baz &
qux mean.
…
I think we can do better. By using directional operators, we can allow readers to move their eye
in only one direction, be that left-to-right or right-to-left. And by using idioms common in other
programming languages, we can allow people who aren't familiar with Haskell to guess at the
meaning.
So instead of ($), I propose (<|). It is a pipe, which anyone who has touched a Unix system
should be familiar with. And it points in the direction it sends arguments along. Similarly,
replace (&) with (|>). …
square $ twice $ inc $ 3
square <| twice <| inc <| 3
3 & inc & twice & square
3 |> inc |> twice |> square
Here is an example of how |> and
<| improve readability

Since & is just the reverse of $, we can deﬁne |> ourselves simply by ﬂipping $
λ "left" ++ "right"
"leftright”
λ
λ (##) = flip (++)
λ
λ "left" ## "right"
"rightleft"
λ
λ inc n = n + 1
λ twice n = n * 2
λ square n = n * n
λ
λ square $ twice $ inc $ 3
64
λ
λ (|>) = flip ($)
λ
λ 3 |> inc |> twice |> square
64
λ
int_to_digits s n =
n |> iterate (x -> div x 10)
|> takeWhile (x -> x > 0)
|> map (x -> mod x 10)
|> reverse
And here is how our
funcAon looks using |>.
@philip_schwarz

Now let’s set ourselves the following task. Given a posiAve integer N with n digits, e.g. the ﬁve-digit number
12345, we want to compute the following:
[(0,0),(1,1),(12,3),(123,6),(1234,10),(12345,15)]
i.e. we want to compute a list of pairs p0 , p1 , … , pn with pk being ( Nk , Nk 𝛴 ), where Nk is the integer number
formed by the ﬁrst k digits of N, and Nk𝛴 is the sum of those digits. We can use our int_to_digits funcAon to
convert N into its digits d1 , d2 , … , dn :
λ int_to_digits 12345
[1,2,3,4,5]
λ
And we can use digits_to_int to turn digits d1 , d2 , … , dk into Nk , e.g. for k = 3 :
λ digits_to_int [1,2,3]
123
λ
How can we generate the following sequences of digits ?
[ [ ] , [d1 ] , [d1 , d2 ] , [d1 , d2 , d3 ] , … , [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ] ]
As we’ll see on the next slide, that is exactly what the inits funcAon produces when passed [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ] !

𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = [[ ], 𝑥0 , 𝑥0, 𝑥1 , 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 ]
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 ∷ α → α
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 = [ ]
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 = ∶ 𝑚𝑎𝑝 𝑥: (𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥𝑠)
Here is a deﬁniAon for inits.
So we can apply inits to [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ] to generate the following:
[ [ ] , [d1 ] , [d1 , d2 ] , [d1 , d2 , d3 ] , … , [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ] ]
e.g.
λ inits [1,2,3,4]
[[],[1],[1,2],[1,2,3],[1,2,3,4]]]
λ
And here is what inits produces, i.e.
the list of all ini5al segments of a list.

So if we map digits_to_int over the iniXal segments of [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ], i.e
[ [ ] , [d1 ] , [d1 , d2 ] , [d1 , d2 , d3 ] , … , [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ] ]
we obtain a list containing N0 , N1 , … , Nn , e.g.
λ map digits_to_int (inits [1,2,3,4,5]))
[0,1,12,123,1234,12345]]
λ
What we need now is a funcXon digits_to_sum which is similar to digits_to_int but which instead of converXng a list of digits
[d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dk ] into Nk , i.e. the number formed by those digits, it turns the list into Nk𝛴, i.e. the sum of the digits. Like
digits_to_int, the digits_to_sum funcXon can be deﬁned using a leB fold:
digits_to_sum :: [Int] -> Int
digits_to_sum = foldl (+) 0
Let’s try it out:
λ map digits_to_sum [1,2,3,4])
1234]
λ
Now if we map digits_to_sum over the iniXal segments of [d1 , d2 , d3 , … , dn ], we obtain a list containing N0 𝛴 , N1 𝛴 , … , Nn 𝛴 ,
e.g.
λ map digits_to_sum (inits [1,2,3,4,5]))
[0,1,12,123,1234,12345]]
λ
(⊕) :: Int -> Int -> Int
(⊕) n d = 10 * n + d

(⊕) :: Int -> Int -> Int
(⊕) n d = 10 * n + d
convert :: Int -> [(Int,Int)]
convert n = zip nums sums
where nums = map digits_to_int segments
sums = map digits_to_sum segments
segments = inits (int_to_digits n)
int_to_digits s n =
|> map (x -> mod x 10)
|> reverse
λ convert 12345
[(0,0),(1,1),(12,3),(123,6),(1234,10),(12345,15)]
λ
So here is how our complete
program looks at the moment.
@philip_schwarz

What we are going to do next is see how, by using the scan le/ funcAon, we are
able to simplify the deﬁniAon of convert which we just saw on the previous slide.
As a quick refresher of (or introducAon to) the scan le/ funcAon, in the next two
slides we look at how Richard Bird describes the funcAon.

4.5.2 Scan le/
SomeXmes it is convenient to apply a 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 operaXon to every iniXal segment of a list. This is done by a funcXon 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙
pronounced ‘scan leB’. For example,
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = [𝑒, 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0, (𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1, ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2]
In parXcular, 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 + 0 computes the list of accumulated sums of a list of numbers, and 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 × 1 [1. . 𝑛] computes a list of
the first 𝑛 factorial numbers. … We will give two programs for 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙; the first is the clearest, while the second is more efficient.
For the first program we will need the funcXon inits that returns the list of all iniDal segments of a list. For Example,
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = [[ ], 𝑥0 , 𝑥0, 𝑥1 ,
𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 ]
The empty list has only one segment, namely the empty list itself; A list 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 has the empty list as its shortest iniDal segment,
and all the other iniDal segments begin with 𝑥 and are followed by an iniDal segment of 𝑥𝑠. Hence
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 ∷ α → α
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 = [ ]
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 = ∶ 𝑚𝑎𝑝 (𝑥: )(𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥𝑠)
The funcXon 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 can be defined more succinctly as an instance of 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑟 :
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 = 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑟 𝑓 [ ] 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑓 𝑥 𝑥𝑠𝑠 = ∶ 𝑚𝑎𝑝 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠𝑠
Now we define
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → [𝛽]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 = 𝑚𝑎𝑝 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 . 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠
This is the clearest definiXon of 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 but it leads to an inefficient program. The funcXon 𝑓 is applied k Xmes in the evaluaXon of Richard Bird

𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 on a list of length k and, since the initial segments of a list of length n are lists with lengths 0,1,…,n, the function 𝑓 is
applied about n2/2 times in total.
Let us now synthesise a more efficient program. The synthesis is by an induction argument on 𝑥𝑠 so we lay out the calculation in
the same way.
<…not shown…>
In summary, we have derived
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → [𝛽]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 = [𝑒]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 = 𝑒 ∶ 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥 𝑥𝑠
This program is more efficient in that function 𝑓 is applied exactly n times on a list of length n.
Richard Bird
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2
⬇
[𝑒, 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0, (𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1, ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2]
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽
Note the similariXes and diﬀerences between 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 and 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙, e.g. the leV hand sides of their equaXons are the
same, and their signatures are very similar, but 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 returns [𝛽] rather than 𝛽 and while 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 is tail recursive,
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 isn’t.
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → [𝛽]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 = [𝑒]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥: 𝑥𝑠 = 𝑒 ∶ 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 𝑓 𝑓 𝑒 𝑥 𝑥𝑠
⬇
((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2

On the next slide, a very simple example of
using scanl, and a reminder of how the result
of scanl relates to the result of inits and foldl.

𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 2,3,4 = [[ ], 2 , 2,3 , 2,3,4 ]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 + 0 2,3,4 = [0, 2, 5, 9]
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 + 0 [ ] =0
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 + 0 2 = 2
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 + 0 2,3 = 5
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 + 0 2,3,4 = 9
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2
⬇
[𝑒, 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0, (𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1, ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2]
𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 = [[ ], 𝑥0 , 𝑥0, 𝑥1 , 𝑥0, 𝑥1, 𝑥2 ]
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → [𝛽]
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 𝑥0, 𝑥1, … , 𝑥𝑛 − 1 =
… ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) … ⊕ 𝑥 𝑛 − 1
𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ∷ 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽 → 𝛽 → 𝛼 → 𝛽
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 𝑥1, 𝑥2
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 ⊕ 𝑥1 𝑥2
= 𝑓𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙 ⊕ (( 𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0 ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2) [ ]
= ((𝑒 ⊕ 𝑥0) ⊕ 𝑥1) ⊕ 𝑥2
𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑙 + 0 2,3,4
⬇
[0, 0 + 2, 0 + 2 + 3, 0 + 2 + 3 + 4]

where nums = map foldl (⊕) 0 segments
sums = map foldl (+) 0 segments
AVer that refresher of (introducXon to) the scanl funcXon, let’s see how it can help us simplify our definiXon of the convert funcXon.
The first thing to do is to take the definiXon of convert and inline its invocaXons of digits_to_int and digits_to_sum:
refactor
Now let’s extract (int_to_digits n) into digits and inline segments.
refactor
where nums = map foldl (⊕) 0 (inits digits)
sums = map foldl (+) 0 (inits digits)
digits = int_to_digits n
where nums = map foldl (⊕) 0 segments
sums = map foldl (+) 0 segments
where nums = scanl (⊕) 0 digits
sums = scanl (+) 0 digits
where nums = map foldl (⊕) 0 (inits digits)
sums = map foldl (+) 0 (inits digits)
refactor
As we saw earlier, mapping foldl over the result of applying inits to a list, is just applying
scanl to that list, so let’s simplify convert by calling scanl rather than mapping foldl.

where nums = scanl (⊕) 0 digits
sums = scanl (+) 0 digits
The suboptimal thing about our current definition of convert
is that it does two left scans over the same list of digits.
Can we refactor it to do a single scan? Yes, by using tupling, i.e. by changing the func.on
that we pass to scanl from a func.on like (⊕) or (+), which computes a single result, to
a func.on, let’s call it next, which uses those two func.ons to compute two results
convert n = scanl next (0, 0) digits
where next (number, sum) digit = (number ⊕ digit, sum + digit)
On the next slide, we inline digits and compare the resul.ng
convert func.on with our ini.al version, which invoked scanl twice.
@philip_schwarz

convert n = scanl next (0, 0) (int_to_digits n)
where next (number, sum) digit = (number ⊕ digit, sum + digit)
Here is our ﬁrst deﬁniAon of convert
And here is our refactored version, which uses a left scan.
The next slide shows the complete Haskell program,
and next to it, the equivalent Scala program.

(⊕) :: Int -> Int -> Int
(⊕) n d = 10 * n + d
int_to_digits s n =
|> map (x -> mod x 10)
|> reverse
λ convert 12345
[(0,0),(1,1),(12,3),(123,6),(1234,10),(12345,15)]
λ
convert n = scanl next (0, 0) (int_to_digits n)
where next (number, sum) digit =
(number ⊕ digit, sum + digit)
def digitsToInt(ds: Seq[Int]): Int =
ds.foldLeft(0)(`(⊕)`)
implicit class Sugar(m: Int)
{ def ⊕(n: Int) = `(⊕)`(m,n) }
def digitsToSum(ds: Seq[Int]): Int =
ds.foldLeft(0)(_+_)
.map ( _ % 10 )
.toList
.reverse
def convert(n: Int): Seq[(Int,Int)] = {
val next: ((Int,Int),Int) => (Int,Int) = {
case ((number, sum), digit) =>
(number ⊕ digit, sum + digit) }
intToDigits(n).scanLeft((0,0))(next)}
def `(⊕)`(n: Int, d: Int): Int =
10 * n + d
scala> convert(12345)
val res0…= List((0,0),(1,1),(12,3),(123,6),(1234,10),(12345,15))
scala>
fold
λ

In the next slide we conclude this deck with Sergei Winitzki‘s
recap of how in func5onal programming we implement
mathema5cal induc5on using folding, scanning and itera5on.

Use arbitrary inducDve (i.e., recursive) formulas to:
• convert sequences to single values (aggregaDon or “folding”);
• create new sequences from single values (“unfolding”);
• transform exisXng sequences into new sequences.
Table 2.1: ImplemenXng mathemaDcal inducDon
Table 2.1 shows Scala code implemenDng those tasks. IteraDve calculaDons are implemented by translaDng mathemaDcal
inducDon directly into code. In the funcDonal programming paradigm, the programmer does not need to write any loops or use
array indices. Instead, the programmer reasons about sequences as mathemaDcal values: “StarDng from this value, we get that
sequence, then transform it into this other sequence,” etc. This is a powerful way of working with sequences, dicDonaries, and
sets. Many kinds of programming errors (such as an incorrect array index) are avoided from the outset, and the code is shorter
and easier to read than convenDonal code wriPen using loops.
Sergei Winitzki

The Functional Programming Triad of Folding, Scanning and Iteration - a first example in Scala and Haskell - Polyglot FP for Fun and Profit

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