Gleam has first class functions, meaning functions are normal values that can be assigned to variables, passed as arguments, and returned from other functions.
A named function defined in a module can be referenced by its name.
pub fn main() {
// Assign the function to a variable
let f = add_one
// Invoke the function
f(1) // -> 2
f(2) // -> 3
}
fn add_one(x) {
x + 1
}
Gleam also has anonymous functions, which are defined within other functions.
// Define the function
let f = fn(x) { x + 1 }
// Invoke the function
f(1) // -> 2
f(2) // -> 3
The type of a function is written using a similar syntax to anonymous functions. The type of a function that takes an Int and a Float and returns an Int is written like this:
fn(Int, Float) -> Int
Anonymous functions can reference variables that were in scope when they were defined, making them closures.
let secret_number = 42
// This function always returns 42
fn() { secret_number }
The function capture syntax provides a convenient shorthand for creating anonymous functions that pass a single argument to a function. These two expressions are equivalent:
// Anonymous function syntax
let f = fn(x) { my_function(1, 2, x) }
// Function capture syntax
let f = my_function(1, 2, _)
In this exercise, you've been tasked with writing the software for an encryption device that works by performing transformations on data. You need a way to flexibly create complicated functions by combining simpler functions together.
For each task, return an anonymous function that can be invoked from the calling scope.
Implement secret_add. It should return a function which takes one argument and adds to it the argument passed in to secret_add.
let adder = secret_add(2)
adder(2)
// -> 4
Implement secret_subtract. It should return a function which takes one argument and subtracts the secret passed in to secret_subtract from that argument.
let subtractor = secret_subtract(2)
subtractor(3)
// -> 1
Implement secret_multiply. It should return a function which takes one argument and multiplies it by the secret passed in to secret_multiply.
let multiplier = secret_multiply(7)
multiplier(3)
// -> 21
Implement secret_divide. It should return a function which takes one argument and divides it by the secret passed in to secret_divide.
let divider = secret_divide(3)
divider(32)
// -> 10
Implement secret_combine. It should return a function which takes one argument and applies to it the two functions passed in to secret_combine in order.
let multiply = secret_multiply(7)
let divide = secret_divide(3)
let combined = secret_combine(multiply, divide)
combined(6)
// -> 14
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