I think the bigger take away for me is that what constitutes low level has evolved over time. I still think C is low level because you have to manage your own m

I think the bigger take away for me is that what constitutes low level has evolved over time. I still think C is low level because you have to manage your own memory and can play tricks with pointers and memory that other languages protect you from. Meaning that low level takes off a lot of the training wheels. The compiler still does what it can and optimizes things but you have a far greater ability to shoot yourself in the foot than in some other language. The arguments about what a "real" low level in these comments seem mostly pedantic.