What is a (side) effect?
summary
Argues that “side effect” lacks a crisp definition and that what matters are concrete operation sets and laws: shows monads, monad transformers and free monads, algebraic effect handlers with continuations, and type-and-effect systems separating values from computation as real tools, demonstrates handlers can resume or replay continuations and make composition easier while transformers become awkward, points out order of composition matters, cites Frank and dependent-type examples (Idris-style signatures) as worked research directions, and recommends focusing on algebras and laws rather than naming a single solution.
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chapters (9)
- 0:00Introduction to effects
- 2:15Monads as a modeling tool
- 5:51The obsession with monads
- 9:41Challenges in combining effects
- 12:10Algebraic effects and handlers
- 18:02Effect systems and theory
- 20:40Real-world modeling problems
- 27:01A new approach to effects
- 32:50Q&A and conclusion
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