Re: Defining a function P[A_ | B_]:=f[A,B] overriding Alternatives
- To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
- Subject: [mg19221] Re: Defining a function P[A_ | B_]:=f[A,B] overriding Alternatives
- From: Eckhard Hennig <hennig at itwm.uni-kl.de>
- Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 02:06:42 -0400
- Organization: ITWM
- References: <7oojvg$i35@smc.vnet.net>
- Sender: owner-wri-mathgroup at wolfram.com
Peltio schrieb in Nachricht <7oojvg$i35 at smc.vnet.net>... >Is there a general way to call a function with arguments separated not by >commas but by user defined symbols (particularly Mathematica sacred symbols) >? >_________________________________________________ > > >Here's what I mean: >I was willing to define a function for the calculation of the conditional >probabilty, via the Bayes formula, and I wanted to define it in such a way >that the function call would be: > >p[A|B] > >but Mathematica correctly interpreted the lhs of the definition >p[A_|B_] as if there were two alternative arguments. >I can unprotect Alternatives and clear it and that would work, > >Unprotect[Alternatives]; >Clear[Alternatives]; >p[A_|B_]:= {A,B} > >p[A|B] > {A,B} > >but, is there a less traumatic way to achieve this without fully sacrificing >Alternatives? It would be fine to avoid its evaluation only when inside a >[ ] function, by means of upvalues. But the following does not seems to >work: > >Unprotect[Alternatives]; >Alternatives /: p[A_|B_]:={A,B} > >And yet I wanted to be able to define my function without showing the >Alternatives /: part. Is there a way to inhibit the Alternatives evaluation >inside p[] in a single statement (that could be hidden in a initialization >cell)? After defining p[A_ | B_] you can manipulate the DownValues of p as follows to prevent interpretation of the Alternatives pattern. In[1]:= p[A_ | B_] := {A, B} In[2]:= DownValues[p] = DownValues[p] /. Alternatives -> HoldPattern[Alternatives]; In[3]:= p[C | D] Out[3]= {C, D} However, this requires applying the replacement rule from In[2] after defining the pattern p[A_|B_]. The following piece of code performs this replacement automatically; it can be put into an initialization cell. Note that the SetDelayed pattern only works for the symbol p. The variable SetDelayedFlag prevents infinite recursion. In[1]:= SetDelayedFlag = True; Unprotect[SetDelayed]; SetDelayed[x_p, y_] /; SetDelayedFlag := Block[{SetDelayedFlag = False}, x := y; DownValues[p] = DownValues[p] /. {HoldPattern[Alternatives] -> HoldPattern[Alternatives], Alternatives -> HoldPattern[Alternatives]}; ]; Protect[SetDelayed]; In[2]:= p[ A_ | B_] := {A, B} (* No explicit manipulation of DownValues necessary here. *) In[3]:= p[C | D] Out[3]= {C, D} -- Eckhard ----------------------------------------------------------- Dipl.-Ing. Eckhard Hennig mailto:hennig at itwm.uni-kl.de Institut fuer Techno- und Wirtschaftsmathematik e.V. (ITWM) Erwin-Schroedinger-Strasse, 67663 Kaiserslautern, Germany Voice: +49-(0)631-205-3126 Fax: +49-(0)631-205-4139 http://www.itwm.uni-kl.de/as/employees/hennig.html ITWM - Makers of Analog Insydes for Mathematica http://www.itwm.uni-kl.de/as/products/ai -----------------------------------------------------------