Functional Proframming

Question 1

Describe Functional Programming (FP)

Answer 1

Applying pure functions in sequence to solve complex problems. Functions take input value and product output value without being affected by the program.

Question 2

What is a pure function?

Answer 2

• The same input of a function will always return the same output.
• Immutable variables. No input to a function is altered, but can be copied, then altered and returned.
• No side-effects… Really though, its minimize side effects
  Limit access to global/external scoped variables
  Attempt to be stateless
• Pure functions are composable (A pure function can be made of other functions if they are pure)

Question 3

What are the Pros and Cons of Functional Programming?

Answer 3

Pros
Easy to understand because not stateful/does not have side effects.
Testing and debugging is easier, as the function is passed everything it needs and does not rely on state or have side effects.
Cons
Writing pure functions can reduce readability for complex operations.
Joining pure functions with the rest of application and IO operations can be difficult.

Question 4

When to use Functional Programming?

Answer 4

• Concurrency/parallelism
• Mathematical computational code
• Smaller/less feature rich applications.