Quote

It goes against the grain of modern education to teach children to program. What fun is there in making plans, acquiring discipline in organizing thoughts, devoting attention to detail and learning to be self-critical?

Alan Perlis

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Alan Perlis
Age: 67 †
Born: 1922
Born: April 1
Died: 1990
Died: February 7
Computer Scientist
Mathematician
University Teacher
Pittsburg
Pennsylvania
Alan Jay Perlis
Alan J. Perlis
Acquiring
Education
Discipline
Organizing
Teach
Students
Detail
Attention
Plans
Making
Thoughts
Grain
Self
Goes
Programming
Children
Fun
Details
Learning
Critical
Devoting
Modern
Program

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We are on the verge: Today our program proved Fermat's next-to-last theorem.
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You can measure a programmer's perspective by noting his attitude on the continuing vitality of FORTRAN.
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Some programming languages manage to absorb change, but withstand progress.
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Often it is the means that justify the ends: goals advance technique and technique survives even when goal structures crumble.
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One can't proceed from the informal to the formal by formal means.
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When a professor insists computer science is X but not Y, have compassion for his graduate students.
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Computer Science is embarrassed by the computer.
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If you have a procedure with 10 parameters, you probably missed some.
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A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming is not worth knowing.
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Every program has (at least) two purposes: the one for which it was written and another for which it wasn't.
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Every reader should ask himself periodically “Toward what end, toward what end?”—but do not ask it too often lest you pass up the fun of programming for the constipation of bittersweet philosophy.
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If a listener nods his head when you're explaining your program, wake him up.
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Don't have good ideas if you aren't willing to be responsible for them.
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In computing, the mean time to failure keeps getting shorter.
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Any noun can be verbed.
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If your computer speaks English, it was probably made in Japan.
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