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Seems like a weird conclusion to draw. If programming languages are arbitrary why didn’t we stop abstracting or creating new ones? The language is often a refl
by sosodev 6y ago
Seems like a weird conclusion to draw. If programming languages are arbitrary why didn’t we stop abstracting or creating new ones?
The language is often a reflection of the problem it was intended to solve. Would you really argue that Brainfuck can solve your problems just as well as Python?
- uncomputation 6y agoNot that programming languages are arbitrary, but that the choice to use words (Python) rather than, say, punctuation (Brainfck) or emojis is because is easier for our human brains, thus arbitrary. But the task at hand is still problem solving, not language processing (at least not in the capacity of a typical conversation). I think a good example of this is the popularity of code visualizers. The only thing stopping Brainfck from solving your problems as easily as Python is the ease of human understanding, not some fundamental property of Python being more “language-like.”
- sosodev 6y agoThat’s not what arbitrary means. If we make languages in a certain way because it’s easier for our brains then it isn’t arbitrary by definition.