Re: Lisp, the secret weapon.

From: Tony Berkman (tberkman@rcn.com)
Date: Sun Apr 29 2001 - 11:11:15 PDT


When I was at CMU, the AI courses I took were taught using prolog (maybe a
swipe at MIT), but we had the option of using Lisp if we wanted. I think
we also had to learn Lisp for comparative programming languages. Our
introductory CS class used Pascal and Smalltalk was the introduction to
OOP. C was frowned upon in general because it was such a hybrid. Now,
I've heard the intro course teaches C++ as it has become much more OOPy and
procedural programming has fallen out of favor, but I have no idea what
language is used for the AI classes. I'm fairly certain it's still either
Prolog or Lisp.

>Is lisp still taught in undergrad CS programs? I heard that at Berkeley,
>they switched the first CS class from using lisp to java. Maybe the reason
>viaweb was so fast in execution had nothing to do with being done in Lisp,
>but rather it might have been because all the people who knew lisp well
>enough also happened to be stellar programmers from MIT.
>
>The problem with using lisp is that regardless of whether it is a "superior
>language", it's not efficient to use unless you can hire enough people to
>program in it, and that supply is surely limited.
>
>james



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