title: Ruby * operator before array
body: <blockquote>
    <p><strong>Possible Duplicate:</strong><br>
    <a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/7557382/understanding-ruby-splat-in-ranges-and-arrays">Understanding ruby splat in ranges and arrays</a>  </p>
  </blockquote>
  
  
  
  <p>could anyone tell me what the * does in the following piece of code?</p>
  
  <pre><code>line = "name=yabbi;language=ruby;"
  Hash[*line.split(/=|;/)]
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Thanks.</p>