Ruby | Vector r() Function

Ruby is a dynamic, open-source programming language known for its simplicity and ease of use. One of its built-in libraries is Vector, which provides useful functions for working with vectors. In this article, we'll be taking a closer look at the r() function in the Vector library.

The Vector Library

Before we dive into the r() function, let's quickly review what the Vector library is all about. As the name suggests, it provides tools for working with vectors - those quantities that have both magnitude and direction.

The Vector library comes built-in with Ruby, so we don't need to install any external packages or dependencies to use it. The library defines a Vector class that we can use to create and manipulate vectors in our code.

Here's a quick example of creating a vector and performing some operations on it:

require 'matrix' # Ensure we have the Vector library
v1 = Vector[1, 2, 3]
v2 = Vector[4, 5, 6]
v3 = v1 + v2 # => Vector[5, 7, 9]

As you can see, the Vector library lets us create vectors by passing in their components as arguments to the Vector constructor. We can then perform operations on those vectors using the methods defined on the Vector class, such as addition and subtraction.

The r() Function

Now that we have a basic understanding of the Vector library, let's take a closer look at the r() function. The r() function is a method defined on the Vector class that returns the magnitude (or length) of a vector. It takes no arguments and simply returns a single numeric value.

Here's an example of using the r() function to calculate the magnitude of a vector:

require 'matrix' # Ensure we have the Vector library
v = Vector[3, 4]
mag = v.r # => 5.0

In this example, we created a two-dimensional vector with components [3, 4]. We then called the r() function on that vector to calculate its magnitude, which we stored in the variable mag. The resulting value of mag is 5.0, which is the expected value for a vector with components [3, 4].

It's worth noting that the r() function can be used on vectors of any dimensionality - not just two-dimensional vectors like the one in our example. The function simply calculates the magnitude of the vector, regardless of how many components it has.

Conclusion

The r() function in Ruby's Vector library is a handy tool for calculating the magnitude of a vector. It's a simple function that takes no arguments and returns a single numeric value. By using the Vector library and its various functions, we can make working with vectors in our Ruby code much easier and more expressive.