hmm, the VM concept dates back to 1966 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-code_machine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-code_machine), though of course the JVM was t

hmm, the VM concept dates back to 1966 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-code_machine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-code_machine), though of course the JVM was the first to achieve wide adoption. I hear there've been many advancements in VM technology in the JVM, esp for JIT compilation, and (I don't know but) possibly these could be fundamental. I keep thinking of Alan Kay's claim that nothing significant has been invented in computer science in the last 30 years (since 1980): http://stackoverflow.com/questions/432922/significant-new-inventions-in-computing-since-1980 http://stackoverflow.com/questions/432922/significant-new-in...