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I'm sure this is a dumb question, but can someone explain why it's frequently written as "the lambda calculus"? I never see "the algebra" or "the trigonometry"

• repsilat 12y ago
  It's meant more in the sense you might hear "the ring of the integers" or "the field of complex numbers". The lambda calculus is a calculus (i.e., one of many.) "Which calculus? The lambda calculus." You might not hear "the algebra" very often, but you might talk about an algebra, and if the particular algebra you're talking about is clear from context you might sometimes refer to it as "the algebra". In this sense I think the word "calculus" tends to mean "formal system".
  • kevincennis 12y ago
    Thanks. That makes sense.