I don't understand this error message. Haskell appears not to understand that 1 is a Num. Prelude> :t 1 1 :: (Num t) => t Prelude> :t [1,2,3,4,5] [1,2,3,4,5] :: (Num t) => [t] Prelude> Michael =================== f :: [Int] -> IO [Int] f lst = do return lst main = do let lst = f [1,2,3,4,5] fmap (+1) lst =============================== Prelude> :l test [1 of 1] Compiling Main ( test.hs, interpreted ) test.hs:5:17: No instance for (Num [Int]) arising from the literal `1' at test.hs:5:17 Possible fix: add an instance declaration for (Num [Int]) In the second argument of `(+)', namely `1' In the first argument of `fmap', namely `(+ 1)' In the expression: fmap (+ 1) lst Failed, modules loaded: none. Prelude>