Scheme: About cond - lisp

(cond ((test-1) (expression-1)))
When i use a cond, can i give the several functions in (expression-1)?
Like this:
(cond ((= 1 1) ((fun1) (fun2)) )

The begin is actually optional -- cond (in Scheme as well as in Emacs Lisp, at least) take multiple expressions after each test expression and evaluate them in turn in an implicit begin
(cond ((= 1 1) (fun1 ...) (fun2 ...))
(t (something-else)))
Use #t instead of t for Scheme

Yes, you can execute multiple expressions by wrapping them in a begin as shown below
(cond ((= 1 1) (begin (fun1) (fun2)))
NOTE: The return value of the begin expression will the be result of last expression i.e in the example the return value will be of fun2 execution

Related

how to return the value of a prime number while trying to print the sum of prime numbers in a range of numbers from check-prime to prime-sum

I was working on this question to print the sum of prime numbers in a range of numbers. The range values will be be taken as an input from the user. I got the syntax errors all cleared out but could not figure out how to return the value of the prime no. to the sum if it is true.
(defun check-prime(num)
(if (= num 1) nil)
;(setq i 2)
(loop for i from 2 to ( isqrt num) do
(if (= (mod num i) 0) nil t)
(= i (+ i 1))
)
)
(defun prime-sum(*begin* *end*)
(defvar *s* 0)
(defvar *i* *end*)
(loop for *i* from *end* to *begin* do
;i= 13
(if (check-prime *i*)
(= *s* (+ *s* *i* ) )
)
(= *i* (- *i* 1))
)
(write *s*)
)
(defun vals()
(print "enter the range1: ")
(defvar *begin* (read))
(print "enter the range2: ")
(defvar *end* (read))
(prime-sum *begin* *end*)
)
(print(vals))
;b =4
;e 13
Here is your function, cleaned up a bit and formatted in a conventional way:
(defun check-prime(num)
(if (= num 1) nil)
(loop
for i from 2 to (isqrt num)
do
(if (= (mod num i) 0) nil t)
(= i (+ i 1))))
There are multiple things that are incorrect, and they boil down to how are Lisp forms evaluated.
There is a special form progn in Common Lisp that is used to evaluate a list of expressions, with the following pattern:
(progn E1 E2 ... EN)
A lot of other functions in Lisp are described has having "an implicit progn", that's the case for defun which allows for more than one expression in its body, but since the progn doesn't appear literally it is implicit. The behavior is however always the same: each expression E1 to EN is evaluated in sequence, and evaluation of the whole progn are the values returned by the last expression, EN (that's where the N comes from in the name). In other words, the intermediate values from E1 etc. are discarded, the expressions are only useful for their side-effects.
In your code, that's the case for (if (= num 1) nil), which is an expression in the body of defun which is not the last one, and which doesn't even have side-effects. It is thus completely useless.
Likewise, in the loop macro, all that follows the do keyword are expressions that are evaluated for their side effects and do not contribute to the resulting value of the whole loop form.
In fact, loop is a bit complicated but here your don't have any accumulating clause in your loop (something like collect, append, sum etc. that would compute a result). Instead, your loop will always return nil.
Note also that for i from 2 to (isqrt num) takes care of incrementing i, you don't have to do it yourself like you tried in the do. Moreover, = is a comparison operator, in order to mutate i you would need to use setf instead: (setf i (+ i 1)), or (incf i) (which I repeat is unnecessary here).
To combine the first two expressions, I would write:
(if (= num 1) nil ...)
Where ... is the loop: because if is a functional if, it evaluates to whichever branch is selected by the condition.
And inside the loop, I would use never:
(loop for i from 2 to (isqrt num) never (= 0 (mod num i)))
The never clause makes the loop compute a boolean and halt as soon as the result is false.

a function called A-SUM that calculates Σpi=ni, where n≥0,p≥0. Below are examples of what A-SUM returns considering different arguments

CL-USER> (a-sum 0 3)
->> 6
I wrote this program :
(defun a-sum (x y)
(if (and (> x -1) (> y -1))
(do ((i 0 (1+ i))
(sum 0)
(num x))
((equal i (+ (- y x) 1)))
(setq sum (+ sum num))
(setq num (+ num 1))
sum)
(print " NOPE")))
put if I run it in the terminal it returns nil and not the answer stated above;
can someone help with the problem so it returns the value then Boolean.
DO,DO* Syntax
The entry for DO,DO* says that the syntax is as follows:
do ({var | (var [init-form [step-form]])}*)
(end-test-form result-form*)
declaration*
{tag | statement}*
The body is used as a list of statements and no intermediate value in this body is used as the result form of the do form. Instead, the do form evaluates as the last expression in result-form*, which defaults to nil.
(do ((i 0 (1+ i))
(sum 0)
(num x))
((equal i (+ (- y x) 1))
;;; RESULT FORMS HERE
)
(setq sum (+ sum num)) ;; (*)
(setq num (+ num 1)) ;; (*)
sum ;; (*)
)
All the expressions marked commented (*) above are used for side-effects only: the result of their evaluation is unused and discarded.
Problem statement
It is not clear to me what Σpi=ni means, and your code does not seem to compute something that could be expressed as that mathematical expression.
One red flag for example is that if (+ (- y x) 1) is negative (i.e. if y < x-1, for example y=1,x=3), then your loop never terminates because i, which is positive or null, will never be equal to the other term which is negative.
I would try to rewrite the problem statement more clearly, and maybe try first a recursive version of your algorithm (whichever is easier to express).
Remarks
Please indent/format your code.
Instead of adding setq statements in the body, try to see if you can define them in the iteration clauses of the loop (since I'm not sure what you are trying to achieve, the following example is only a rewrite of your code):
(do ((i 0 (1+ i))
(sum 0 (+ sum num)
(num x (1+ num))
(... sum))
Consider what value(s) a function returns. It's the value of the last form evaluated. In your case, that appears to be a do or maybe a setq or print (It's difficult to read as it's formatted now, and I don't have question edit privileges).
In short, the form that's returning the value for the function looks to be one evaluated for side-effects instead of returning a value.

Common Lisp Backquote/Backtick: How to Use?

I am having trouble with Lisp's backquote read macro. Whenever I try to write a macro that seems to require the use of embedded backquotes (e.g., ``(w ,x ,,y) from Paul Graham's ANSI Common Lisp, page 399), I cannot figure out how to write my code in a way that compiles. Typically, my code receives a whole chain of errors preceded with "Comma not inside a backquote." Can someone provide some guidelines for how I can write code that will evaluate properly?
As an example, I currently need a macro which takes a form that describes a rule in the form of '(function-name column-index value) and generates a predicate lambda body to determine whether the element indexed by column-index for a particular row satisfies the rule. If I called this macro with the rule '(< 1 2), I would want a lambda body that looks like the following to be generated:
(lambda (row)
(< (svref row 1) 2))
The best stab I can make at this is as follows:
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule (rule)
(let ((x (gensym)))
`(let ((,x ,rule))
(lambda (row)
(`,(car ,x) (svref row `,(cadr ,x)) `,(caddr ,x))))))
Upon evaluation, SBCL spews the following error report:
; in: ROW-SATISFIES-RULE '(< 1 2)
; ((CAR #:G1121) (SVREF ROW (CADR #:G1121)) (CADDR #:G1121))
;
; caught ERROR:
; illegal function call
; (LAMBDA (ROW) ((CAR #:G1121) (SVREF ROW (CADR #:G1121)) (CADDR #:G1121)))
; ==>
; #'(LAMBDA (ROW) ((CAR #:G1121) (SVREF ROW (CADR #:G1121)) (CADDR #:G1121)))
;
; caught STYLE-WARNING:
; The variable ROW is defined but never used.
; (LET ((#:G1121 '(< 1 2)))
; (LAMBDA (ROW) ((CAR #:G1121) (SVREF ROW (CADR #:G1121)) (CADDR #:G1121))))
;
; caught STYLE-WARNING:
; The variable #:G1121 is defined but never used.
;
; compilation unit finished
; caught 1 ERROR condition
; caught 2 STYLE-WARNING conditions
#<FUNCTION (LAMBDA (ROW)) {2497F245}>
How can I write macros to generate the code I need, and in particular, how do I implement row-satisfies-rule?
Using the ideas from Ivijay and discipulus, I have modified the macro so that it compiles and works, even allowing forms to be passed as the arguments. It runs a bit differently from my originally planned macro since I determined that including row as an argument made for smoother code. However, it is ugly as sin. Does anyone know how to clean it up so it performs the same without the call to eval?
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule-p (row rule)
(let ((x (gensym))
(y (gensym)))
`(let ((,x ,row)
(,y ,rule))
(destructuring-bind (a b c) ,y
(eval `(,a (svref ,,x ,b) ,c))))))
Also, an explanation of clean, Lispy ways to get macros to generate code to properly evaluate the arguments at runtime would be greatly appreciated.
First of all, Lisp macros have "destructuring" argument lists. This is a nice feature that means instead of having an argument list (rule) and then taking it apart with (car rule) (cadr rule) (caddr rule), you can simply make the argument list ((function-name column-index value)). That way the macro expects a list of three elements as an argument, and each element of the list is then bound to the corresponding symbol in the arguemnt list. You can use this or not, but it's usually more convenient.
Next, `, doesn't actually do anything, because the backquote tells Lisp not to evaluate the following expression and the comma tells it to evaluate it after all. I think you meant just ,(car x), which evaluates (car x). This isn't a problem anyway if you use destructuring arguments.
And since you're not introducing any new variables in the macro expansion, I don't think (gensym) is necessary in this case.
So we can rewrite the macro like this:
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule ((function-name column-index value))
`(lambda (row)
(,function-name (svref row ,column-index) ,value)))
Which expands just how you wanted:
(macroexpand-1 '(row-satisfies-rule (< 1 2)))
=> (LAMBDA (ROW) (< (SVREF ROW 1) 2))
Hope this helps!
If you need the argument to be evaluated to get the rule set, then here's a nice way to do it:
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule (rule)
(destructuring-bind (function-name column-index value) (eval rule)
`(lambda (row)
(,function-name (svref row ,column-index) ,value))))
Here's an example:
(let ((rules '((< 1 2) (> 3 4))))
(macroexpand-1 '(row-satisfies-rule (car rules))))
=> (LAMBDA (ROW) (< (SVREF ROW 1) 2))
just like before.
If you want to include row in the macro and have it give you your answer straightaway instead of making a function to do that, try this:
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule-p (row rule)
(destructuring-bind (function-name column-index value) rule
`(,function-name (svref ,row ,column-index) ,value)))
Or if you need to evaluate the rule argument (e.g. passing '(< 1 2) or (car rules) instead of (< 1 2)) then just use (destructuring-bind (function-name column-index value) (eval rule)
Actually, a function seems more appropriate than a macro for what you're trying to do. Simply
(defun row-satisfies-rule-p (row rule)
(destructuring-bind (function-name column-index value) rule
(funcall function-name (svref row column-index) value)))
works the same way as the macro and is much neater, without all the backquoting mess to worry about.
In general, it's bad Lisp style to use macros for things that can be accomplished by functions.
One thing to understand is that the backquote feature is completely unrelated to macros. It can be used for list creation. Since source code usually consists of lists, it may be handy in macros.
CL-USER 4 > `((+ 1 2) ,(+ 2 3))
((+ 1 2) 5)
The backquote introduces a quoted list. The comma does the unquote: the expression after the comma is evaluated and the result inserted. The comma belongs to the backquote: the comma is only valid inside a backquote expression.
Note also that this is strictly a feature of the Lisp reader.
Above is basically similar to:
CL-USER 5 > (list '(+ 1 2) (+ 2 3))
((+ 1 2) 5)
This creates a new list with the first expression (not evaluated, because quoted) and the result of the second expression.
Why does Lisp provide backquote notation?
Because it provides a simple template mechanism when one wants to create lists where most of the elements are not evaluated, but a few are. Additionally the backquoted list looks similar to the result list.
you don't need nested backquotes to solve this problem. Also, when it's a macro, you don't have to quote your arguments. So (row-satisfies-rule (< 1 2)) is lispier than (row-satisfies-rule '(< 1 2)).
(defmacro row-satisfies-rule (rule)
(destructuring-bind (function-name column-index value) rule
`(lambda (row)
(,function-name (svref row ,column-index) ,value))))
will solve the problem for all calls in the first form. Solving the problem when in the second form is left as an exercise.

Can you execute multiple statements in an "if" statement?

This is my function:
(defun MyFunction(input)
(let ((NEWNUM (find input num)))
(if (find input num) //if this
(setq num NEWNUM) (FUNCT2) //then execute both of these
(list 'not found)))) //else output this
So after the if statement I want to be able to execute (setq num NEWNUM) followed by (FUNCT2) in order to set a new variable and then call a function. Any ideas on how to do this?
To do several things in sequence, you want progn.
(defun MyFunction(input)
(let ((NEWNUM (find input num)))
(if (find input num) //if this
(progn
(setq num NEWNUM)
(FUNCT2)) //then execute both of these
(list 'not found)))) //else output this
When your if is 'one-armed', as they call it (that is, it contains no else branch), it's typically easier and more idiomatic to use when and unless: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/Groups/AI/html/hyperspec/HyperSpec/Body/mac_whencm_unless.html
When you call (when pred x y ... z), it will just evaluate x y z sequentially if pred is true. unless behaves similarly when pred is NIL. x y z can represent any number of statements from one upwards. Thus:
(when pred (thunk))
is just the same as
(if pred (thunk))
Some people say when and unless should always be used for 'one-armed-ifs' because of clarity.
Edit: Your thread gave me an idea. This macro:
(defmacro if/seq (cond then else)
`(if ,cond (progn ,#then) (progn ,#else)))
should enable this:
(if/seq (find input num) //if this
((setq num NEWNUM) (FUNCT2)) //then execute both of these
((list 'not found)))))
So the general format is:
(if/seq *condition* (x y ... z) (a b ... c))
Depending on the condition, it evaluates all of the subforms in the first or second, but only returns the last.
You can't use multiple statements with if, except with progn as posted above. But there is the cond form,
(cond
((find input num) // if this
(setq num NEWNUM) // then execute both of these
(FUNCT2))
(t
(list 'not found))) // else output this
Just to add, you could also use the (begin exp1 exp2...) syntax to evaluate more than one expression in Lisp sequentially. Using this on an if's branch will have the same effect as using multiple statements.

Lisp warning: xx is neither declared nor bound, it will be treated as if it were declared SPECIAL

I am new to lisp and am writing a few simple programs to get more familiar with it. One of the things I am doing is writing a recursive and iterative version of a factorial method. However, I have come across a problem and can't seem to solve it.
I saw a similar error at
Lisp: CHAR is neither declared nor bound
but a solution wasn't actually reached, other than the OP realized he made a "typing mistake". In the REPL I can use the setf function and it works fine. I am also using LispBox with emacs. I would appreciate any suggestions!
(defun it-fact(num)
(setf result 1)
(dotimes (i num)
(setf result (* result (+ i 1)))
)
)
WARNING in IT-FACT :
RESULT is neither declared nor bound,
it will be treated as if it were declared SPECIAL.
There are a few things wrong or not so good Lisp style:
(defun it-fact(num) ; style: use a space before (
(setf result 1) ; bad: variable RESULT is not introduced
(dotimes (i num)
(setf result (* result (+ i 1))) ; bad: extra addition in each iteration
) ; style: parentheses on a single line
) ; bad: no useful return value
A possible version:
(defun it-fact (num)
(let ((result 1)) ; local variable introduced with LET
(loop for i from 1 upto num ; I starts with 1, no extra addition
do (setf result (* result i)))
result)) ; result gets returned from the LET
In Lisp, local variables must be explicitly declared with LET or other forms that create local variables.
That differs from e.g. Python or JavaScript where assignment to variable creates the variable in current lexical scope.
Your example can be rewritten like this:
(defun it-fact(num)
(let ((result 1))
(dotimes (i num)
(setf result (* result (+ i 1))))))
An off-topic comment: there is no point in putting closing parentheses on separate lines.
You need to bind the variable 'result' - using 'let', for example - before starting to use it:
(defun it-fact(num)
(let ((result 1))
(dotimes (i num)
(setf result (* result (+ i 1))))))
For futher details you might want to read this ...