Since you did not give any example queries, start with some example queries to determine the parameters and output format. Normally to determine the parameters and output format for unknown code requires looking at the code for the structure of the arguments and then trying sample queries. Additionally note that this code uses the Constraint … Read more
What is the idiomatic approach to this class of problems? Is there a way to simplify the problem? Many of the following remarks could be added to many programs here on SO. Imperative names Every time, you write an imperative name for something that is a relation you will reduce your understanding of relations. Not … Read more
Use CLP(FD) constraints, for example: :- use_module(library(clpfd)). binary_number(Bs0, N) :- reverse(Bs0, Bs), foldl(binary_number_, Bs, 0-0, _-N). binary_number_(B, I0-N0, I-N) :- B in 0..1, N #= N0 + B*2^I0, I #= I0 + 1. Example queries: ?- binary_number([1,0,1], N). N = 5. ?- binary_number(Bs, 5). Bs = [1, 0, 1] . ?- binary_number(Bs, N). Bs = … Read more
Those prefix operators, in this context, represent instantiation modes, i.e. they tell you which arguments should be variables or instantiated when calling the predicate. They also tell you if an argument will be (possibly further) instantiated by the call. They can also be used to tell you that an argument is going to be meta-interpreted … Read more
TL;DR: Don’t. The cut prunes Prolog’s search tree. That is, given a pure Prolog program without cut and the same program with cuts the only difference is that the program with cuts might spend less time in fruitless branches, and thus is more efficient ; might have fewer answers ; it might also terminate whereas … Read more
There are two issues involved. How to get the variable name X into the system, and how to get a term with such a variable into the atom. The X you type in is read by the top level which converts it to a regular variable which does not have a name associated. Let’s see … Read more
Yes, there is such a control construct in ISO Prolog, called ->. You use it like this: ( condition -> then_clause ; else_clause ) Here is an example that uses a chain of else-if-clauses: ( X < 0 -> writeln(‘X is negative. That’s weird! Failing now.’), fail ; X =:= 0 -> writeln(‘X is zero.’) … Read more
First, let’s translate the clauses into something more understandable: append([], List, List) :- !. can be written append([], List2, Result) :- Result = List2, !. and append([H|L1], List2, [H|L3]) :- append(L1, List2, L3). can be written append(List1, List2, Result) :- List1 = [Head1 | Tail1], Result = [HeadR | TailR], Head1 = HeadR, append(Tail1, List2, … Read more
For elegance and didactic reasons alone, dif/2 is clearly preferable here and also in the vast majority of other cases, since as you already note “a lot of unnecessary unifications might take place” otherwise, and also because dif/2 is a pure and nicely declarative predicate that can be used in all directions and at any … Read more
What’s probably more useful than a slightly less nondeterministic length/2 is a proper list-length constraint. You can find an ECLiPSe implementation of it here, called len/2. With this you get the following behaviour: ?- N :: 1..3, len(Xs, N). N = N{1 .. 3} Xs = [_431|_482] % note it must contain at least one … Read more