ForeignFunctions package for Macaulay2

TL;DR

The ForeignFunctions package for Macaulay2 enables dynamic calling of external library functions using libffi, demonstrated through applications like polynomial multiplication, linear model solving, and Fibonacci computation.

Contribution

It introduces a new Macaulay2 package that allows calling external library functions at runtime without prior linking, expanding computational capabilities.

Findings

Successfully called FFTW for polynomial multiplication

Used LAPACK to solve linear models

Computed Fibonacci numbers via JIT compilation

Abstract

We introduce the ForeignFunctions package for Macaulay2, which uses libffi to provide the ability to call functions from external libraries without needing to link against them at compile time. As examples, we use the library FFTW to multiply polynomials using fast Fourier transforms, call a LAPACK function to solve a general Gauss-Markov linear model problem, and use JIT compilation to compute Fibonacci numbers.