14.6 Conclusion

In this Chapter we have concentrated on only a single aspect of the Functional Programming paradigm: exploiting the fact that functions are first-class citizens in R, we studied a number of higher-order functions that can substitute for loops. There is certainly a great deal more to Functional Programming than the mere avoidance of loops, but we’ll end our study at this point. Familiarity with higher-order functions will stand you in good stead when you begin, in subsequent courses on web programming, to learn the JavaScript language. JavaScript makes constant use of higher-order functions!