type 'a delta
STRUCTURE
SYNOPSIS
A type used for telling when a function has changed its argument.
DESCRIPTION
The delta type is declared as follows:
   datatype 'a delta = SAME | DIFF of 'a
The delta type may be used in applications where it is important to tell if a function has changed its argument or not. As an example of this, consider mapping a function over a large collection of elements. If only a few elements are changed, it makes sense to re-use all those that were not changed. This can of course be handled on an ad hoc basis; the delta type provides a mechanism for doing this systematically.
COMMENTS
The delta type is an example of polytypism.
SEEALSO
HOL  Kananaskis-13