note
spurperl
I started typing the whole thing but it's too long, so I'll just post the code relevant to my comment. I feel that sigils are unnecessary at all (and they are harmful to my wrists !)
<code>
##
## Sigil invariance
##
array = [1, 3, 5, 12, 37, 42]
# I use symbols here, but one can use strings: {'alpha' => 4, 'beta' => 6}
#
hash = {:alpha => 4, :beta => 6}
third = array[2]
# This would be hash['beta'] when using strings
#
beta = hash[:beta]
# Ruby doesn't slice as a part of syntax - there are special member
# methods for that. I personally see it as a good thing.
odds = array.values_at(1, 3, 5)
bets = hash.values_at(:alpha, :beta)
</code>
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