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clarify wording on pure-functions overview to allow immutable hidden state, and add an example #3134

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fix typos
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epic-64 authored Dec 21, 2024
commit 2e29269b8d8b20137f4efc2c6778e1bc87395b87
13 changes: 6 additions & 7 deletions _overviews/scala3-book/fp-pure-functions.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ Conversely, the following functions are _impure_ because they violate the defini

Impure functions often do one or more of these things:

- Read from hidden mutable state, i.e., they access non-constant variables and data not explicitly passed into the function as input parameters.
- Read from hidden mutable state, i.e., they access non-constant data that was not explicitly passed into the function as input parameters
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"non-constant" is not really a synonym for "mutable". I would suggest using the word "mutable" again even if it feels a bit repetitive; it's more important to be precise.

- Write to hidden state
- Mutate the parameters they’re given, or mutate hidden variables, such as fields in their containing class
- Perform some sort of I/O with the outside world
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -98,17 +98,16 @@ def double(i: Int): Int = i * 2

{% endtabs %}

The next example is bit more tricky. Here, i is not passed as a parameter, but instead referenced directly from the function body.
This works in Scala because functions act as closure - they can capture the state around them. As long as that state is *immutable*, the function is still considered pure.
In this case, the function always returns `6` and each call could be safely replaced with its result.
This concept of closures and "fixing values" is an important tool in functional programming that you will encounter often as you go forward.
The next example is bit more tricky. Here, `i` is not passed as a parameter, but instead referenced directly from the outside.
This works in Scala because functions act as closures - they can capture the state around them. As long as that state is *immutable*, such a closure is still considered pure.
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Not sure this is the best wording since we usually use "state" to talk about mutable state. Not all of the time. I would suggest "capture values from enclosing scopes".

In this case, the function always returns `6` and each call can be safely replaced with its result.

{% tabs fp-pure-function-closure %}

{% tab 'Scala 2 and 3' %}
```scala
val i = 3
def double(i: Int): Int = i * 2
def double(): Int = i * 2
```
{% endtab %}

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -145,7 +144,7 @@ If you understand that code, you’ll see that it meets the pure function defini

The first key point of this section is the definition of a pure function:

> A _pure function_ is a function that depends only on its declared inputs and its implementation to produce its output.
> A _pure function_ is a function that depends only on its declared inputs, captured constants, and its implementation to produce its output.
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suggest "closed-over values" rather than "captured constants"

> It only computes its output and does not depend on or modify the outside world.

A second key point is that every real-world application interacts with the outside world.
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