Discussion on: Write a script to find "Happy Numbers"

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Adding a solution in Haskell:

-- core function; read from bottom to top

f :: Int -> Int
f = sum          -- Sum up the squares
  . map ((^2)    -- Compute squares
         .read   -- Convert digit strings to Ints
         .(:[])) -- Explode number string to list of digit strings
  . show         -- Convert input number to string

-- This is a folding pattern with a tricky break condition,
-- depending on the list element and the accumulator.

foldP :: (a -> b -> b) -> (a -> b -> Bool) -> b -> [a] -> b
foldP f p acc [] = acc
foldP f p acc (x:xs) | p x acc = acc
                     | otherwise = foldP f p (f x acc) xs

-- Cut off a list's tail, once a number is repeating.
-- (reverts the preserved part of the list)

cut :: Eq a => [a] -> [a]
cut = foldP (:) elem [] -- fold by appending and checking if x is already in list

-- Iterate the core function, cut the result list and check if the final
-- result is 1.

isHappy :: Int -> Bool
isHappy = (== 1) . head . cut . iterate f

main = print $ filter isHappy [1..200]

Note that Haskell function composition with the (.) operator is read from right to left (or from bottom to top, respectively). The hardest part for FP is folding with a non-trivial break condition, here.

Heiko Dudzus • Feb 7 '18 • Edited

And now that I have learned a simpler break condition for the problem, it is easier:

f :: Int -> Int
f = sum          -- Sum up the squares
  . map ((^2)    -- Compute squares
         .read   -- Convert digits to Ints
         .(:[])) -- Explode number string to list of digit strings
  . show         -- Convert input number to string

isHappy :: Int -> Bool
isHappy n | n == 4 = False
          | n == 1 = True
          | otherwise = isHappy (f n)

main = print $ filter isHappy [1..200]

On the other hand, I like the possibility of my original code to see the list of intermediate results to get a feeling for the problem.