
27 Jan
2010
27 Jan
'10
1:30 p.m.
Here's one for you to ponder. 7 is a number. 7 is an integer, and integers are numbers. 7 is not a field. 7 is an element of [at least one] field, but 7 itself is not a field. 7 is not a group. 7 is a member of the set of integers, but the set of integers is not a group either. The set of integers form a group when taken together with the addition operator. (And, actually, forms another, different, group when taken with the multiplication operator.) Now, here's the question: Is is correct to say that [3, 5, 8] is a monad? Is it correct to say that lists are a monad? Or would it be more correct to say that lists "form" a monad?