Homework #1

The Emperor's New Clothes

If you believe this assignment is not fully specified, please tell me ASAP, so that it can be fixed in a timely manner.

Goals of this assignment

Most books on the subject of programming languages start out with a chapter on the history of languages or perhaps with a list of modern design objectives. Thus, the student memorizes the dates of languages or the list for the next test. Modern languages sit on the shoulders of what came before. The goal of this homework assignment is to read the words of both C.A.R. Hoare and Niklaus Wirth on programming languages and then to analyze the strengths and weaknesses in what they have said. Thought is important rather than memorization.

Assignment Requirements

1. Read the paper, "The Emperor's Old Clothes", by Hoare in Communications of the ACM, February 1981, Volume 24, No. 2. It is available on-line through the ACM Digital Library via the library (wally.rit.edu). You are not responsible for reading the biographical introduction to this document.
2. Read the paper, "From Programming Language Design to Computer Construction", by Wirth in Communications of the ACM February, 1984, Volume 28, No. 2. It is available on-line through the ACM Digital Library via the library (wally.rit.edu). You are not responsible for reading the biographical introduction to this document.
   
3. Formulate what you think are the most important lessons from each of their experiences that are still valuable today.
4. Formulate what you think are the lessons from their experiences that are less significant today, either because you feel the lesson was incorrect to begin with or because changes in technology have made the lesson insignificant.
5. Write a 1-2 page paper discussing these lessons. Be prepared to talk about the lessons in class when the homework assignment is due. All papers should include a cover sheet with your name, class information, and homework title. Papers should also be appropriately stapled before class. The professor is not responsible for misplacing separate sheets of paper that should be attached to one another.
   

Grading Criteria

This assignment will be graded out of 100 points and will have the following breakdown:

1. 55% - Student has read the papers and followed directions.
2. 15% - The significant lessons from the papers are correct and discussed in a reasonable manner.
3. 15% - The less significant lessons from the papers are correct and discussed in a reasonable manner.
4. 10% - The discussion includes depth.
5.   5% - The paper is well written without significant grammatical and/or spelling errors.