On Lisp in Clojure chapter 7 (7.5 - 7.11)

I am continuing to translate the examples from On Lisp by Paul Graham into Clojure. The examples and links to the rest of the series can be found on github.

This post covers the second half of chapter 7. Stuart Halloway also has a post on this chapter on his blog.

Section 7.5 Destructuring in Parameter Lists

Clojure also has destructuring in the same form as Graham describes in Common Lisp. Clojure also supports destructuring with its map collection type. The book Clojure Programming shows how to combine vector destructuring and map destructuring in a parameter list or let binding. But back to the example...

(let [[x [y] & z] ['a ['b] 'c 'd ]]
  (list x y z))

In the next example, Graham shows a function called dolist which executes a particular function against each member of a list in succession. This may sound like map, but map builds a new list from the return values generated by applying a function to the members of a list. dolist executes a function against each member of a list and disregards the return values. It is used to execute a function for its side effects. Clojure's version is called doseq.

(doseq [x '(1 2 3)]
  (println x))

Graham then shows a way to implement a version of dolist. He builds a macro that takes in a list, a return value and the body of commands to be executed. I like the example, especially because it shows how to incorporate an optional parameter (return) and a variadic parameter (body) in the same parameter list.

The Clojure example doesn't work quite the same though. map in Clojure is lazy, the terms will only be evaluated when they are used. So if you don't pass a return value the map executes, because the reader wants to print out the return values. If you do pass a parameter, that becomes the only return value the repl needs to display, so the mapped function is never executed.

(defmacro our-dolist [[lst & result] & body]
  `(do  (map ~@body ~lst)
        ~@result))

(macroexpand-1 (our-dolist [[1 2 3] ] #(println %)))
(macroexpand-1 (our-dolist [[1 2 3] 4] #(println %)))

Section 7.6 A Model of Macros

Graham's our-defmacro, in addition to writing the desired function, also added a property called 'expander and attached it to the created function. I thought Clojure's metadata could serve the same purpose, but I was not able to make it work. Defmacro seems to work, and macroexpand-1 works the same with it.

(defmacro our-defmacro [name params & body]
  `(defn ~name [~@params]
     (do
       ~@body)))

(macroexpand-1 '(our-defmacro test [x] (println x)(+ x 2)))

Section 7.7 Macros as Programs

In this section, Graham shows how lists can be turned into programs by using macros. The expression we would want to use in Clojure though would have the parameters in a map, instead of a list where position matters.

While the named parameters are nicer than the Common Lisp version, at the same time I did cut a couple of corners. I wrote some of the values so that I didn't have to translate them, such as the let binding, which I wrote as one long vector and stated explicitly that z was nil.

;; our desired call
(our-looper {:initial-vals [w 3 x 1 y 2 z nil]
             :body ((println x) (println y))
             :loop-params [x x y y]
             :recursion-expr ((inc x) (inc y))
             :exit-cond (> x 10)
             :exit-code (println z)
             :return-val y})

;; our desired result
(let [w 3 x 1 y 2 z nil]
  (loop [x x y y]
    (if (> x 10)
      (do (println z) y )
       (do
         (println x)
         (println y)
         (recur (inc x) (inc y))))))

;; the macro
(defmacro our-looper [{:keys [initial-vals
                              body
                              loop-params
                              recursion-expr
                              exit-cond
                              exit-code
                              return-val]}]
  `(let [~@initial-vals]
     (loop [~@loop-params]
       (if ~exit-cond
         (do ~exit-code
             ~return-val)
         (do ~@body
             (recur ~@recursion-expr))
         ))))

Section 7.8 Macro Style

I just translated the first implementation of and; as Graham says, it is the more readable.

(defmacro our-and [& args]
  (loop [lst args]
    (cond
     (= (count lst) 0) true
     (= (count lst) 1) (first lst)
     :else (if (first lst) (recur (rest lst)) false))))

Section 7.9 Dependence on Macros

Just as Graham describes for Common Lisp, in Clojure if a function-b depends on function-a, when function-a is updated, function-b will reflect the change. If function-d depends on macro-c, function-d will not be updated when macro-c is updated.

(defn func-a [input]
  (+ input 1))
(defn func-b []
  (func-a 3))
(func-b)
;; 4
(defn func-a [input]
  (+ input 10))
(func-b)
;; 13

(defmacro macro-c [input]
  `(+ ~input 1))
(defn func-d []
  (macro-d 3))
(func-d)
;; 4
(defmacro macro-c [input]
  `(+ ~input 10))
(func-d)
;; 4

Section 7.10 Macros from Functions

The examples from this section are all pretty straight forward.

(defn second-f [x]
  (first (rest x)))

(defmacro second-m [x]
  `(first (rest ~x)))

(defn noisy-second-f [x]
  (println "Someone is taking a cadr")
  (first (rest x)))

(defmacro noisy-second-m [x]
  `(do
     (println "Someone is taking a cadr")
     (first (rest ~x))))

(defn sum-f [& args]
  (apply + args))

(defmacro sum-m [& args]
  `(apply + (list ~@args)))

(defmacro sum2-m [& args]
  `(+ ~@args))

(defn foo [x y z]
  (list x (let [x y]
            (list x z))))

(defmacro foo-m [x y z]
  `(list ~x
         (let [x# ~y]
           (list x# ~z))))

(macroexpand-1
 (foo-m 1 2 3) )

Section 7.11 Symbol Macros

Symbol macros do not exist in core clojure. Konrad Hinsen has a library that adds symbol macros and other useful macro functions.