Call me a sentimental fogie, but the first programming laguage I ever learned was Scheme. (for those who don't know, Scheme is a LISP derivative) Scheme is syntactically simpler than most programming languages, and lends itself easily to developing a working knowledge of theoretical computer science (i.e. data structures and abstraction, recursion, and algorithm fundamentals). The "bible" of Scheme is called Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs, by Harold Abelson, Gerald Jay Sussman, and Julie Sussman.
The reason that Scheme is not as well known as a programming language is that it is sort of the "learning beater car" of programming languages. Scheme's main utility advocates are in AI and its sub-disciplines, so commercial applications will not be written in Scheme. There is no great market for Scheme programmers, but there is a market for programmers who can understand the fundamentals behind great programming. I think that this book especially lends itself to the beginning programmer- and for web support of all kinds the Scheme Repository of Indiana University is rivalled only by the Schem Underground at MIT.
I can corroborate your view- I attended Presidential Classroom in summer of '97- our program coordinator was "flag"-level clearance at teh NSA. (if you don't know, maybe you don't want to) We had a walking tour of the facilities, and this much I can tell you- #- The NSA is the #1 recruiting center for "theoretical" mathematicians (number/ring/field theory, abstract/linear algebra, analysis) in the world. (approximately 70% of the talent pool) Read their recruiting page (easy enough to find)- at least the NSA realizes that pure mathematics eventually advances all of technology. #- Where we visited, the people were quiet but friendly: to sum up, there are numerous signs with 50's-style comic-book people waving their fingers and saying "Remember, no confidential talk." #- The NSA is an impressive R&D dept. in their own rite outside of cryptography- the projects we were "allowed" to view included: high-penetration PCMCIA wireless-LAN (at the time of my visit, 1000 yards through concrete and steel); fingerprint pattern recognition via embedded systems about as big as a credit card (dead serious- we were told to expect it to be a standard in about 4-5 years);and finally, natural language recognition that gives Dragon Naturally Speaking (?) pause. (so far, Spanish, Japanese, and certain dialects of English are recognized) It's an impressive facility, and I would encourage anyone who wants to know more to take the tour- there ARE certain things that the people who work there can tell you about. Not EVERYTHING's top secret.
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The reason that Scheme is not as well known as a programming language is that it is sort of the "learning beater car" of programming languages. Scheme's main utility advocates are in AI and its sub-disciplines, so commercial applications will not be written in Scheme. There is no great market for Scheme programmers, but there is a market for programmers who can understand the fundamentals behind great programming. I think that this book especially lends itself to the beginning programmer- and for web support of all kinds the Scheme Repository of Indiana University is rivalled only by the Schem Underground at MIT.
Good luck in your programming endeavors!
Hey we all want the A doctors- but oddly enough, somehow 50% of all doctors graduated in the bottom half of their class . . .
I can corroborate your view- I attended Presidential Classroom in summer of '97- our program coordinator was "flag"-level clearance at teh NSA. (if you don't know, maybe you don't want to) We had a walking tour of the facilities, and this much I can tell you- #- The NSA is the #1 recruiting center for "theoretical" mathematicians (number/ring/field theory, abstract/linear algebra, analysis) in the world. (approximately 70% of the talent pool) Read their recruiting page (easy enough to find)- at least the NSA realizes that pure mathematics eventually advances all of technology. #- Where we visited, the people were quiet but friendly: to sum up, there are numerous signs with 50's-style comic-book people waving their fingers and saying "Remember, no confidential talk." #- The NSA is an impressive R&D dept. in their own rite outside of cryptography- the projects we were "allowed" to view included: high-penetration PCMCIA wireless-LAN (at the time of my visit, 1000 yards through concrete and steel); fingerprint pattern recognition via embedded systems about as big as a credit card (dead serious- we were told to expect it to be a standard in about 4-5 years);and finally, natural language recognition that gives Dragon Naturally Speaking (?) pause. (so far, Spanish, Japanese, and certain dialects of English are recognized) It's an impressive facility, and I would encourage anyone who wants to know more to take the tour- there ARE certain things that the people who work there can tell you about. Not EVERYTHING's top secret.