AI and the Origins of the Functional Programming Language Style.
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| Title: | AI and the Origins of the Functional Programming Language Style. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Priestley, Mark1 m.priestley@gmail.com |
| Source: | Minds & Machines. Sep2017, Vol. 27 Issue 3, p449-472. 24p. |
| Subjects: | LISP (Computer program language), Functional programming (Computer science), Lambda calculus, Association for Computing Machinery, Newell, Allen, 1927-1992 |
| Abstract: | The Lisp programming language is often described as the first functional programming language and also as an important early AI language. In the history of functional programming, however, it occupies a rather anomalous position, as the circumstances of its development do not fit well with the widely accepted view that functional languages have been developed through a theoretically-inspired project of deriving practical programming languages from the lambda calculus. This paper examines the origins of Lisp in the early AI programming work of the mid-to-late 1950s, and in particular in the work of Allen Newell, Cliff Shaw and Herbert Simon. Their 1956 program, the Logic Theory Machine, introduced new ideas about data and program structures that were articulated in response to perceived limitations in existing programming technique. Later writers, notably John Backus, have described these features as constituting a 'programming language style' distinct from the traditional style that preceded it. The paper examines the origins of the earlier style in practices of manual computation, analyses the key technical differences between it and the style first manifested in the Logic Theory Machine, and concludes that programming practice and experience play a large and underappreciated role in the development of programming styles and languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Minds & Machines is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Engineering Source |
| FullText | Links: – Type: pdflink Text: Availability: 0 |
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| Header | DbId: egs DbLabel: Engineering Source An: 125460606 AccessLevel: 6 PubType: Academic Journal PubTypeId: academicJournal PreciseRelevancyScore: 0 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: AI and the Origins of the Functional Programming Language Style. – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Priestley%2C+Mark%22">Priestley, Mark</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> m.priestley@gmail.com</i> – Name: TitleSource Label: Source Group: Src Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Minds+%26+Machines%22">Minds & Machines</searchLink>. Sep2017, Vol. 27 Issue 3, p449-472. 24p. – Name: Subject Label: Subjects Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22LISP+%28Computer+program+language%29%22">LISP (Computer program language)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Functional+programming+%28Computer+science%29%22">Functional programming (Computer science)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Lambda+calculus%22">Lambda calculus</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Association+for+Computing+Machinery%22">Association for Computing Machinery</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Newell%2C+Allen%2C+1927-1992%22">Newell, Allen, 1927-1992</searchLink> – Name: Abstract Label: Abstract Group: Ab Data: The Lisp programming language is often described as the first functional programming language and also as an important early AI language. In the history of functional programming, however, it occupies a rather anomalous position, as the circumstances of its development do not fit well with the widely accepted view that functional languages have been developed through a theoretically-inspired project of deriving practical programming languages from the lambda calculus. This paper examines the origins of Lisp in the early AI programming work of the mid-to-late 1950s, and in particular in the work of Allen Newell, Cliff Shaw and Herbert Simon. Their 1956 program, the Logic Theory Machine, introduced new ideas about data and program structures that were articulated in response to perceived limitations in existing programming technique. Later writers, notably John Backus, have described these features as constituting a 'programming language style' distinct from the traditional style that preceded it. The paper examines the origins of the earlier style in practices of manual computation, analyses the key technical differences between it and the style first manifested in the Logic Theory Machine, and concludes that programming practice and experience play a large and underappreciated role in the development of programming styles and languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] – Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright Label: Group: Ab Data: <i>Copyright of Minds & Machines is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) |
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| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Identifiers: – Type: doi Value: 10.1007/s11023-017-9432-7 Languages: – Code: eng Text: English PhysicalDescription: Pagination: PageCount: 24 StartPage: 449 Subjects: – SubjectFull: LISP (Computer program language) Type: general – SubjectFull: Functional programming (Computer science) Type: general – SubjectFull: Lambda calculus Type: general – SubjectFull: Association for Computing Machinery Type: general – SubjectFull: Newell, Allen, 1927-1992 Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: AI and the Origins of the Functional Programming Language Style. Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Priestley, Mark IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 09 Text: Sep2017 Type: published Y: 2017 Identifiers: – Type: issn-print Value: 09246495 Numbering: – Type: volume Value: 27 – Type: issue Value: 3 Titles: – TitleFull: Minds & Machines Type: main |
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