What is Expressiveness in a Computer Language

Matthias Blume find at my.address.elsewhere
Wed Jun 21 09:45:22 EDT 2006


Joachim Durchholz <jo at durchholz.org> writes:

> Matthias Blume schrieb:
>> Joachim Durchholz <jo at durchholz.org> writes:
>> 
>>> Matthias Blume schrieb:
>>>> Perhaps better: A language is statically typed if its definition
>>>> includes (or ever better: is based on) a static type system, i.e., a
>>>> static semantics with typing judgments derivable by typing rules.
>>>> Usually typing judgmets associate program phrases ("expressions") with
>>>> types given a typing environment.
>>> This is defining a single term ("statically typed") using three
>>> undefined terms ("typing judgements", "typing rules", "typing
>>> environment").
>> This was not meant to be a rigorous definition.
>
> Rigorous or not, introducing additional undefined terms doesn't help
> with explaining a term.

I think you missed my point.  My point was that a language is
statically typed IF IT IS DEFINED THAT WAY, i.e., if it has a static
type system that is PART OF THE LANGUAGE DEFINITION.  The details are
up to each individual definition.

>> Also, I'm not going to repeat the textbook definitions for those
>> three standard terms here.
>
> These terms certainly aren't standard for Perl, Python, Java, or Lisp,

Indeed.  That's because these languages are not statically typed.



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