is_scalar in PHP

is_scalar — Finds whether a variable is a scalar


Syntax: 
bool is_scalar ( mixed $var )

Finds whether the given variable is a scalar.

Scalar variables are those containing an integer, float, string or boolean. Types array, object and resource are not scalar.

    Note:

    is_scalar() does not consider resource type values to be scalar as resources are abstract datatypes which are currently based on integers. This implementation detail should not be relied upon, as it may change.

    Note:

    is_scalar() does not consider NULL to be scalar.

Parameters: 

var

    The variable being evaluated.

Return Values:

Returns TRUE if var is a scalar FALSE otherwise.
Examples:

Example #1 is_scalar() example
<?php
function show_var($var) 
{
    if (is_scalar($var)) {
        echo $var;
    } else {
        var_dump($var);
    }
}
$pi = 3.1416;
$proteins = array("hemoglobin", "cytochrome c oxidase", "ferredoxin");

show_var($pi);
show_var($proteins)

?>

The above example will output:

3.1416
array(3) {
  [0]=>
  string(10) "hemoglobin"
  [1]=>
  string(20) "cytochrome c oxidase"
  [2]=>
  string(10) "ferredoxin"
}