On 4/12/07, sen1 at math.msu.edu <sen1 at math.msu.edu> wrote:
>
> for some reason, is it equivalent in terms of speed, to do
>
> return(last(sort(list))) or
>
> l1: sort(list),
> return(last(l1))
>
Not surprising. An assignment and a variable fetch aren't very expensive.
It's I suppose more of an aesthetic preference to use
f(x):= last(sort(x))
rather than
f(x):=block([l1],
l1: sort(list),
last(l1) ) /* Last
expression of a block is returned as value of block */
or
f(x):=block([l1],
l1: sort(list),
return(last(l1) )) /* return not
really needed */
For those of us with a Lisp background, the second two seem terribly stilted
and wordy, but I suppose those with a Fortran background would find the
first version unfamiliar.
-s
-s