Both of those examples are trivially modeled with typeclasses (java style interfaces will also cut the mustard here too). Your paper example I would have a “Cu

Both of those examples are trivially modeled with typeclasses (java style interfaces will also cut the mustard here too). Your paper example I would have a “Cutter” and “Cuttable” type classes to describe things that cut and can be cut. In languages like Haskell this only involves a couple extra lines of ceremony over writing a “cut” method on each type. The pot example is even cleaner with types and show the power of them. I’d have a Pot typeclass that can heat things. I’d have a liquid class for all liquids that water implements and finally a boil free function that takes a pot and a liquid. Exactly as expressive but now with compile time checking.