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Re: Selecting Element from List via Pattern Matching

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg89413] Re: [mg89396] Selecting Element from List via Pattern Matching
• From: Andrzej Kozlowski <akoz at mimuw.edu.pl>
• Date: Mon, 9 Jun 2008 02:26:39 -0400 (EDT)
• References: <200806080632.CAA02645@smc.vnet.net> <CC89ADB4-D93E-4280-8D6F-2133700137C6@mimuw.edu.pl> <DB78D68A-54D4-4457-ABEF-5A3CD4C8A7AC@mac.com> <1F81B1AE-6C9B-478A-9BC5-BCD2D2172F14@mimuw.edu.pl>

Something weird happened to the output that I pasted into my message  
below. Should have been:


  Cases[Expand[Sum[Subscript[a, i], {i, 1, 5}]^3], (_.)*Subscript[a,  
2]^2]

{3*Subscript[a, 1]*Subscript[a, 2]^2,
    3*Subscript[a, 2]^2*Subscript[a, 3],
    3*Subscript[a, 2]^2*Subscript[a, 4],
    3*Subscript[a, 2]^2*Subscript[a, 5]}

Andrzej Kozlowski


On 8 Jun 2008, at 20:46, Andrzej Kozlowski wrote:

> Well, it seems to me very strange that one would voluntarily choose  
> to do so much unnecessary work, beginning with converting the  
> original expression into a list, but there is no accounting for  
> tastes...
>
> Even if you really love pattern matching there is no need to convert  
> the original expression to a list - you can simply do:
>
> Cases[Expand[Sum[Subscript[a, i], {i, 1, 5}]^3],
>   _.*Subscript[a, 2]^2]
>
> {3 Subscript[a, 1]
> SubsuperscriptBox[ a ,  2 ,  2 ], 3
> SubsuperscriptBox[ a ,  2 ,  2 ] Subscript[a, 3], 3
> SubsuperscriptBox[ a ,  2 ,  2 ] Subscript[a, 4], 3
> SubsuperscriptBox[ a ,  2 ,  2 ] Subscript[a, 5]}
>
> More importantly,  note that your method will not work if you change  
> your expression only slightly. Try
>
> t = Apply[List,
>   Subscript[a, 1]^2 + Expand[(Sum[Subscript[a, i], {i, 1, 5}])^3]];
>
> Your method gives:
>
> Select[t, MemberQ[#1, Subscript[a, 1]^2] & ]
> {3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*Subscript[a, 2],
>   3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*Subscript[a, 3],
>   3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*Subscript[a, 4],
>   3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*Subscript[a, 5]}
>
> But the correct answer is:
>
> Cases[t, (_.)*Subscript[a, 1]^2]
>
> {Subscript[a, 1]^2, 3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*
>     Subscript[a, 2], 3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*
>     Subscript[a, 3], 3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*
>     Subscript[a, 4], 3*Subscript[a, 1]^2*
>     Subscript[a, 5]}
>
>
>
> Andrzej
>
>
> On 8 Jun 2008, at 20:32, Immanuel Bloch wrote:
>
>> Hello Andrzej,
>>
>> Select[t, MemberQ[#, Power[Subscript[a, 1], 2]] &]
>>
>> seems to have solved my problem.
>>
>> Thanks!
>>
>> Immanuel
>>
>> On Jun 8, 2008, at 9:16 , Andrzej Kozlowski wrote:
>>
>>> On 8 Jun 2008, at 15:32, immanuel.bloch at googlemail.com wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hello,
>>>>
>>>> I am trying to extract from a Power Series all elements with a
>>>> certain exponent, e.g.
>>>> let us say I have generated a list via
>>>>
>>>> t = Apply[List, Expand[(Sum[Subscript[a, i], {i, 1, 5}])^3]]
>>>>
>>>> How can I then extract all terms with e.g. a_2^2 in it or any other
>>>> exponent?
>>>>
>>>> I have tried something like
>>>>
>>>> Cases[t, Times[_, Power[Subscript[a,2],2]]]
>>>>
>>>> but this somehow only works with the exponent n=1 and no others...
>>>>
>>>> Does anybody know a solution to this pattern matching problem?
>>>>
>>>> Thanks!
>>>> Immanuel
>>>>
>>>
>>> But what's wrong with simply doing this:
>>>
>>> Expand[Coefficient[Sum[Subscript[a, i], {i, 1, 5}]^3, Subscript[a,  
>>> 2]^2]*
>>>    Subscript[a, 2]^2]
>>>
>>> 3*Subscript[a, 1]*Subscript[a, 2]^2 +
>>>  3*Subscript[a, 3]*Subscript[a, 2]^2 +
>>>  3*Subscript[a, 4]*Subscript[a, 2]^2 +
>>>  3*Subscript[a, 5]*Subscript[a, 2]^2
>>>
>>> ???
>>>
>>>
>>> Andrzej Kozlowski
>>>
>>
>

• References:
  • Selecting Element from List via Pattern Matching
    • From: immanuel.bloch@googlemail.com