Factorial calculation in Go lang using three different methods: first traditionally, second with closure and third using memoization. The last method is the fastest between the three.

factorial.go

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	"time"
)

const LIM = 41
var facts [LIM]uint64

func main() {
	fmt.Println("==================FACTORIAL==================")
	start := time.Now()
	for i:=uint64(0); i < LIM; i++ {
		fmt.Printf("Factorial for %d is : %d \n", i, Factorial(uint64(i)))
	}
	end := time.Now()
	fmt.Printf("Calculation finished in %s \n", end.Sub(start)) //Calculation finished in 2.0002ms 

	fmt.Println("==================FACTORIAL CLOSURE==================")
	start = time.Now()
	fact := FactorialClosure()
	for i:=uint64(0); i < LIM; i++ {
		fmt.Printf("Factorial closure for %d is : %d \n", uint64(i), fact(uint64(i)))
	}
	end = time.Now()
	fmt.Printf("Calculation finished in %s \n", end.Sub(start)) //Calculation finished in 1ms 

	fmt.Println("==================FACTORIAL MEMOIZATION==================")
	start = time.Now()
	var result uint64 = 0
	for i:=uint64(0); i < LIM; i++ {
		result = FactorialMemoization(uint64(i))
		fmt.Printf("The factorial value for %d is %d\n", uint64(i), uint64(result))
	}

	end = time.Now()
	fmt.Printf("Calculation finished in %s\n", end.Sub(start)) // Calculation finished in 0ms
}

func Factorial(n uint64)(result uint64) {
	if (n > 0) {
		result = n * Factorial(n-1)
		return result
	}
	return 1
}

func FactorialClosure() func(n uint64)(uint64) {
	var a,b uint64 = 1, 1
	return func(n uint64)(uint64) {
		if (n > 1) {
			a, b = b, uint64(n) * uint64(b)
		} else {
			return 1
		}

		return b
	}
}

func FactorialMemoization(n uint64)(res uint64) {
	if (facts[n] != 0) {
		res = facts[n]
		return res
	}

	if (n > 0) {
		res = n * FactorialMemoization(n-1)
		return res
	}

	return 1
}

On go 1.8 there is almost no difference on my Linux box. In the memoization version you do not appear to be saving the output in facts and the recursive call is where the time is spent. I came across this gist when searching for 'golang memoization'.

You bigger problem is after 20! you reach the limits of uin64 and the code wraps and gives bogus answers.

https://www.carlyzach.com/functions/playground/9622710

New to go here: how does the first syntax work with (result int)? Does that do some initialization magic?

FactorialClosure: a declared but not used