Re: [Haskell-beginners] Beginners Digest, Vol 56, Issue 22

Good morning Brent.
Thank you for your recomendation.
I went to Amazon and checked the Table of Contents on the book you
mentioned...
It costs $90 and its not really what I'm looking for.
I'm going to approach this from a different direction. It is:
1. I'm looking for a the Haskell definition of the category Hask...If you
can help me out here, I'd appreciate it.
2. Functor, Monoid and Monad are all classes in Haskell...I'm going to
try to determine how they are related to Hask and to each other.
To do this, I'll review my two favorite Haskell books: "Real World
Haskell" by O'Sullivan etal and "Learn You a Haskell for Great Good!..." by
Lipovaca.
I'll review Functor, Monoid and Monad in these two books and do the
associated exercises [though Lipovaca book does not contain exercises].
Unfortunately, neither book contains an explanation of Hask [and all
of the other Haskell books in my library also do not define Hask].
3. If you know of an online course pertaining to Haskell and CT, I'd
appreciate hearing about it.
4. I may, "shudder", even consider going back to university and pick up
two or three courses in regard to this.
I'll let you know how I make out - I'm heading off on a long, long journey
Good day,
Patrick
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Today's Topics:
1. Re: Beginners Digest, Vol 56, Issue 20 (Brent Yorgey) 2. Re: f . g or f g or f $ g? (Martin Drautzburg) 3. Re: f . g or f g or f $ g? (Emanuel Koczwara) 4. Parsec simple question (Sean Cormican) 5. Re: f . g or f g or f $ g? (Patrick Mylund Nielsen)
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Message: 1 Date: Tue, 12 Feb 2013 14:14:15 -0500 From: Brent Yorgey
Subject: Re: [Haskell-beginners] Beginners Digest, Vol 56, Issue 20 To: beginners@haskell.org Message-ID: <20130212191415.GA5182@seas.upenn.edu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Hi Patrick,
I would highly recommend
Jeremy Gibbons, "Calculating Functional Programs". In Roland Backhouse? Roy Crole and Jeremy Gibbons, editors, Algebraic and Coalgebraic Methods in the Mathematics of Program Construction. Vol. 2297 of Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Pages 148?203. Springer?Verlag. 2002.
http://www.cs.ox.ac.uk/publications/publication2360-abstract.html
From what you've said it sounds like this is exactly what you're looking for.
-Brent
On Tue, Feb 12, 2013 at 10:02:14AM -0500, Patrick Lynch wrote:
Good morning,
I've actually have 6 books in my library. They are: 1. "Algebra Third Edition" by MacLane and Birkhoff [I couldn't get anything out of this book] 2. "Categories for the Working Mathemetician - Second Edition" by Mac Lane [I could get through the first chapter and then gave up] 3. "Conceptual Mathematics - A first introduction to categories" by Lawvere and Schanuel [The first chapter was understandable but the following chapters were completely undecipherable] 4. " Basic Category Theory for Computer Scientists" by Pierce [I could get through all three chapters but couldn't do the exercies - and could not see how CT applies to Haskell {especially, Monoids, Monads and Functors}] 5. "Categories and Computer Science" by Walters [This one made me cry] 6. "Category Theory" by Awodey [Again, I could only get through the first chapter]
I tried viewing the videos by Eugenia Cheng - but I just couldn't follow her presentation. I also viewed another video entitled Hasket and CT - but it was given by a mathematican and I couldn't follow this fellow - I'll have to get the link for this. I finally viewed a video by Brian Beckman in regard to FP [eg: F# and Haskell - and mentions C# as a comparison non-FP language], specifically, in regard to Monoids and it was great - however, he didn't go into CT - but he did recommend that the viewer pursue it.
I'm really not interested in all of the categories in the world...I specifically am interested in how CT applies to Hask, Monoids, Monads and Functors. All of the Haskell authors that I've read have 'ducked' the CT issue - mentioning that it is not necessary to understand Haskell. I often was left with the thought: are they correct or do they simply not understand CT. If you know of a Computer Scientist [and, please, not a Mathematician] who has written in regard to Haskell and CT, please let me know.
Hopefully, there is a reference that is available that will help me - if not, I plan on revisting my Haskell books ["Learn You a Haskell for Great Good!..." by Lipovaca and "Real World Haskell" by O'Sullivan, etal] and focus in on Functors, Monoids, Monads and Hask. I'll also view Brian Beckman's video again and see if I can really follow his example.
Thank you
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To: Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 6:00 AM Subject: Beginners Digest, Vol 56, Issue 20 Send Beginners mailing list submissions to beginners@haskell.org
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Today's Topics:
1. Re: Haskell and Category Theory (Rustom Mody) 2. Re: Haskell and Category Theory (Joe Fredette) 3. Re: Effective use of nested Monads (David Hinkes)
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Message: 1 Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2013 19:01:51 +0530 From: Rustom Mody
Subject: Re: [Haskell-beginners] Haskell and Category Theory To: The Haskell-Beginners Mailing List - Discussion of primarily beginner-level topics related to Haskell Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" On Mon, Feb 11, 2013 at 10:37 AM, Brent Yorgey
wrote: On Sun, Feb 10, 2013 at 12:44:11PM -0500, Patrick Lynch wrote:
Good morning, I've tried to read 5 books on Category Theory and finally have admitted defeat. What I'm looking for is simply a book that is geared to Haskell and Category that can be understood by mere mortals. I was trained as an Electrical Engineer, so my math is quite good, but > I just don't get Category Theory from these books. If anyone can recomment a book on Category Theory and Haskell, written by a Computer Scientest [no more Mathematicians for me], I welcome it. Thanks, Patrick
Can you tell us which books you've tried to read?
-Brent
Well Brent is not going to say it I guess so someone needs to: Typeclassopedia http://www.haskell.org/haskellwiki/Typeclassopedia is required reading

On Wed, Feb 13, 2013 at 10:27 AM, Patrick Lynch
I'm going to approach this from a different direction. It is: 1. I'm looking for a the Haskell definition of the category Hask...If you can help me out here, I'd appreciate it.
I think Hask is not a construct in Haskell; it's a meta-concept *about* Haskell. Or put otherwise, Haskell *itself* is the (imperfect) realization of Hask the category. -- brandon s allbery kf8nh sine nomine associates allbery.b@gmail.com ballbery@sinenomine.net unix, openafs, kerberos, infrastructure, xmonad http://sinenomine.net

On Wed, Feb 13, 2013 at 10:27:12AM -0500, Patrick Lynch wrote:
Good morning Brent.
Thank you for your recomendation. I went to Amazon and checked the Table of Contents on the book you mentioned... It costs $90 and its not really what I'm looking for.
Hi Patrick, I was not suggesting that you buy the book. I included a link in my email where there is a PDF of the particular chapter I mentioned available for free: http://www.cs.ox.ac.uk/publications/publication2360-abstract.html
I'm going to approach this from a different direction. It is: 1. I'm looking for a the Haskell definition of the category Hask...If you can help me out here, I'd appreciate it.
The objects in the category Hask are Haskell types. The morphisms (arrows) in Hask between two objects (i.e. types) A and B are functions of type A -> B. Bottom/undefined actually causes problems in this category so usually when we talk about Hask we pretend that bottom/undefined does not exist, as if we were working in a total (terminating) subset of Haskell. The Functor class is for functors (in the mathematical sense) from Hask to Hask.
2. Functor, Monoid and Monad are all classes in Haskell...I'm going to try to determine how they are related to Hask and to each other.
You seem to have a rigidly preconceived idea of a few narrow questions that you want the answers to. I advise you to broaden your idea of what you would like to learn -- and eventually you will come round to an understanding of the answers to your original questions. I still strongly recommend the Gibbons chapter I mentioned. You say it is not what you are looking for but I think it really is -- it does not contain *explicit* answers to your specific questions but it will start you down the path to understanding them, and from a programming rather than a math perspective like you wanted. -Brent
participants (3)
-
Brandon Allbery
-
Brent Yorgey
-
Patrick Lynch