Min Returns Value That is Not in List

I have a cell array and I am trying to find the min (and max) value. The numbers in the cell array go from 2 to over 200 (but not necessarily all numbers). However, when I try to find the min (using "cellfun" or "cat2mat"), I get 48 as the min and 57 as the max. Neither 48 nor 57 is in my list of values.

Any ideas on what the issue is?

[Guillaume]

Can you give an example of your cell array?

[Paul Huter]

It is a single column with about 226 values.

Answer 1

[Geoff Hayes]

Paul - are you somehow converting your numbers to strings? Try the executing the following statements in the Command Window

 min('104')

 ans =
    48

and

 max('191')

 ans =
    57

The ASCII code for zero is 48, and the ASCII code for 9 is 57. What is the line of code you are using with cellfun?

[John D'Errico]

+1. I would bet a decent sum of money that you got it right. The clue being the statement that the cell array contains "not necessarily all numbers". So it must be a cell array containing strings. Just because something LOOKS like a number does not mean it is stored as such, or that it would be interpreted as a number by MATLAB.

[Paul Huter]

That was the path I was heading down after I posted this. I got things working with min(cellfun(@str2num, ARRAY)).

Thank you.