Brian Kernighan Q&A 2/3 - Computerphile

TL;DR

Programming languages like Go continue to be developed, while functional languages play a crucial role in shaping modern programming practices. However, block-based programming languages like Scratch are unlikely to replace traditional text-based programming.

Transcript

Sean: What's the newest language you use? BWK: I would say the newest language I use is Go, and that is sort of 10 years old at this point. Languages last longer than you think. Fortran, which dates from the late 50s, is still very much alive and still very much used by a lot of people, as is COBOL. Algol lives on in its derivatives; Basic li... Read More

Key Insights

• 🥶 Programming languages continuously evolve, with newer languages like Go being actively used alongside older languages like Fortran and COBOL that remain popular.
• 🖐️ Functional languages have played a significant role in shaping modern programming languages, introducing ideas and concepts that have become mainstream.
• 💦 Though functional languages have their merits, not all programmers find them easy to learn or work with.
• 👶 Building a new processor architecture and operating system requires specialized expertise beyond Kernighan's knowledge base.
• ⚾ Block-based programming languages like Scratch have limitations that make them insufficient for more complex programming tasks.
• 💻 Computer science fundamentals, such as understanding hardware limitations and algorithmic complexities, will always be relevant.
• 💻 The future of computer science lies not only in the core principles and limitations but also in the diverse applications of computing in various fields.

Questions & Answers

Q: What are the newest programming languages Brian Kernighan uses?

Brian Kernighan mentioned that Go is the newest language he actively uses, followed by Rust and Scala, among others.

Q: What is the role of functional languages in modern programming?

Functional languages have provided a proving ground for new programming ideas, with their concepts and practices often making their way into mainstream compiled languages like C++, Java, and Go.

Q: Did Brian Kernighan find success in learning Haskell?

No, Kernighan struggled with learning Haskell and could not internalize the language well. However, he acknowledges that Haskell has valuable ideas and will continue to be useful in programming.

Q: Will block-based programming languages replace text-based programming?

Kernighan believes that block-based programming languages like Scratch have their place in introducing programming to children but are unlikely to replace traditional text-based programming due to limitations in expressing complex computations.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Programming languages such as Go, Rust, and Scala are some of the newer languages that Brian Kernighan has experimented with, but Go is the newest language he actively uses.

• Functional languages have been instrumental in introducing new ideas to mainstream languages, such as recursion and pattern matching. However, Kernighan personally struggled with functional languages like Haskell.

• Building a new processor architecture and operating system requires extensive expertise, something Kernighan suggests he does not possess.

• Despite their usefulness in introducing programming to children, block-based programming languages like Scratch have limitations that hinder their potential to replace traditional text-based languages.