15-212: Principles of Programming

One of the most important features of ML is that it allows the definition of new types with so-called datatype declarations. This means that programs can be written to manipulate the data in a natural representation rather than in complex encodings. This goes hand-in-hand with clausal function definitions using pattern matching on given data types.

We introduce lists and polymorphic datatypes and functions.

Key Concepts

• Datatype declarations
• Lists as recursive types
• Polymorphic types

Sample Code

On-line Notes by Robert Harper

• Lists
• Datatype Declarations
• Type Inference

Suggested Reading in Programming in Standard ML:

• Chapter 8: Type Inference and Polymorphism
• Chapter 9: Programming with Lists
• Chapter 10: Concrete Data Types

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Michael Erdmann