Question

I found this article on partial evaluation which looked pretty cool: (the long link gives a HTML version) http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:sZ6qu87l4u8J:openmap.bbn.com/~kanderso/performance/postscript/essence.ps+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

I thought I’d read it and run the code as I went along. However, I could not get the code to run in either Racket Scheme or SBCL.

Is anyone familiar with this paper, and know what language it is written in?

Answer 1

From the text:

Software examples are given in a Scheme like dialect of Common Lisp
where define replaces defvar, defun, and defmethod. While this may be
confusing to some, the idea is to keep the software abstract and free
of unnecessary detail, since the point is to show how such a language
can be easily and efficiently implemented. The ideas expressed here
should port to other languages as well, perhaps with a bit more work.

Sounds like the Dijkstra school. If you want practical books you can code along with, I’d suggest SICP or Practical Common Lisp. If you weren’t past the basics, I’d also suggest the Schemer Trilogy. Also, if you’re ok with writing in non-Lisp languages, check out Write Yourself a Scheme.