CS 312: Fall 2009

Principles of Programming Languages
CRN 13613

Administrivia

• Email lists are setup automatically to use your W&M email account.
• If you are not going to read email from your CS account, please set a forward; e.g.:

  echo  userid@wm.edu  > ~/.forward
  

  where userid is your W&M user id.
• The submit list assumes that your CS userid is the same as your W&M userid. If your CS userid differs from your W&M userid, you must send me email telling me your CS userid. Please wait to do so until your first assignment is given out.
• Note that the deadline given by submit is not the due date, but rather the drop dead or cutoff date after which the project will no longer be accepted.
• If you have a disability that may affect your performance in this course and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact me as soon as possible.

Catalog Description

A study of programming language principles and paradigms. Formal syntax, including grammars, and semantics. Paradigms, including: imperative, object-oriented, functional, logic, event-driven, and concurrent. Runtime implementation issues, including: memory management, parameter passing, and event handling.

Curriculum 2001 Knowledge Units.

Objectives

• To learn to read and write formal descriptions of programming language syntax.
• To learn to read and write formal descriptions of programming language semantics.
• To be able to define, describe and give examples of:
  1. Binding.
  2. Type.
  3. Computational and control flow constructs.
  4. Scope.
  5. Parameter passing.
• To learn the key characteristics of programming paradigms and express algorithms in:
  1. Object-oriented languages.
  2. Functional languages.
  3. Logic programming languages.
• Accomplishments:
  1. Build an interpreter for a small language.
  2. Type inferencing.
  3. Correctness and static checking.
• Vocabulary: type, binding, scope, ...

Notes

• This is a medium-weight programming course.
• Students may work on homeworks and projects either alone or in pairs. Students who chose to work in pairs must follow the rules for pair programming.
• The programming language du jour is Python.

Sustainability

I support the College's goals on sustainability. This course attempts to reduce paper usage by storing course documents on the web, including the course syllabus, schedule, assignments, and course notes. Assignments will be collected electronically and graded and returned electronically as well. Please limit your use of printing these documents.

For more information about Sustainability at W&M, see http://www.wm.edu/sustainability.

Online Resources

• Online Python text.
• Safari Books On Line
• The Python web site.
• Programming Tutorials
• The Google directory page on Programming Languages
• Wikipedia -- a free encyclopedia.
• Usage Rank of PLs

Swem Reserve

• Sebesta. Concepts of Programming Languages. 2004.
• Tucker and Noonan. Programming Languages: Principles and Paradigms. 2006.
• Louden. Programming Languages: Principles and practice. 2002.