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On 7/31/10 14:24 , michael rice wrote:
> Are you saying:
>
> [ head x ] -> [ *thunk* ] and length [ *thunk* ] -> 1, independent of
> what *thunk* is, even head [], i.e., *thunk* never needs be evaluated?

Exactly. (I was being cagey because the first response was cagey, possibly
suspecting a homework question although it seems like an odd time for it.)

length not only does not look inside of the thunk, it *can't* look inside
it; all it knows is that it has a list, it specifically does *not* know what
that list can hold. So the only thing it can do is count the number of
"unknown somethings" in the list.

- --
brandon s. allbery [linux,solaris,freebsd,perl] allbery@kf8nh.com
system administrator [openafs,heimdal,too many hats] allbery@ece.cmu.edu
electrical and computer engineering, carnegie mellon university KF8NH
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