

Punctuated Equilibrium in the Large Scale Evolution of Programming Languages [pdf] - jeangabriel
http://www.santafe.edu/media/workingpapers/14-09-030.pdf

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vorg
> Programming languages play, within the context of cultural evolution, the
> same role of tongues in human language. However, instead of making
> communication possible among two individuals, they provide the medium to
> single-directed communication between humans and machines.

Abelson and Sussman wrote "programs must be written for people to read, and
only incidentally for machines to execute". I would view, not the programming
language, but the computing machine itself as equivalent to the medium in
human language, whether sound waves and ink on paper. Communication of a
message between two individuals must conform to the restrictions of the medium
used, whether phonetic sounds air can carry, strokes recordable on paper, or
syntax parsable and runnable by a certain compiler.

[1] [http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/full-text/book/book-
Z-H-7.html](http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/full-text/book/book-Z-H-7.html)

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brothe2000
I am thrilled to see the term "Punctuated Equilibrium" used in regards to
language evolution! Very interesting!

