Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!pioneer!eugene From: eugene@pioneer.arpa (Eugene N. Miya) Newsgroups: comp.lang.misc Subject: Re: Language illiteracy Message-ID: <8381@ames.arpa> Date: 6 May 88 16:59:18 GMT References: <786@trwcsed.trwrb.UUCP> <8088@ames.arpa> <4654@ihlpf.ATT.COM> Sender: usenet@ames.arpa Reply-To: eugene@pioneer.UUCP (Eugene N. Miya) Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. Lines: 30 First, I wish to agree with Nevin's comments to Rubin. I'm having the same series of arguments with physicists and mathematicians at Ames, LLNL, and SRC. The best "evidence" they have given me is a chapter on notation (variables) by Whitehead and comments about Feynman diagrams. The problem which was noted in a comp.arch (Steve Stevenson, he asked forgiveness in teaching) posting was the fundamental problem of SYNTAX confliciting with the unseen SEMANTICS. In large part, this is one problem. (See Fred Brooks' Silver Bullet paper). Conjecture: multi-natural lingual people seen to understand this better. In article <4654@ihlpf.ATT.COM> nevin1@ihlpf.UUCP (00704a-Liber,N.J.) writes: >>as a language, drawing as a language, mouse movements as a language (now I see). > >These are not (or should not) be languages (in the sense that you have to >program in them). Stuff like mouse movements are better characterized by >making them a class in an object-oriented language. They are tools that >should be at your disposal, not a language in and of itself. I beg to differ. I once believed as you do here, and perhaps in the future I will revert, but for now I cite to you Sutherland's 66 paper which I also posted to comp.arch [Computer Graphics -- Ten Unsolved Problems, Datamation, May 1966 [when it was a respectable publication]]. Another gross generalization from --eugene miya, NASA Ames Research Center, eugene@ames-aurora.ARPA resident cynic soon to be aurora.arc.nasa.gov at the Rock of Ages Home for Retired Hackers: "Mailers?! HA!", "If my mail does not reach you, please accept my apology." {uunet,hplabs,hao,ihnp4,decwrl,allegra,tektronix}!ames!aurora!eugene "Send mail, avoid follow-ups. If enough, I'll summarize."