Exotic Programming Ideas
3 days ago
- #functional-programming
- #module-systems
- #programming-languages
- Programming languages have evolved to become a new modality of communication, enabling commerce and culture.
- Most modern programming languages follow a C-inspired imperative paradigm with object-oriented features.
- There are two groups of programmers: those who see languages as instruments of human reason and those who see them as tools for production.
- Module systems, originating from Modula-2 and Pascal, allow breaking code into reusable components.
- Standard ML further developed modules, allowing abstraction and parameterization.
- Modules in languages like OCaml can contain both values and types, with signatures constraining visibility and enforcing interfaces.
- Modules can be nested, include other modules, and be parameterized by types or other modules (functors).
- Generative functors produce modules with distinct abstract types, important for references and mutation.
- Module systems in the ML family are powerful for code reuse and essential in functional programming.