Computer Science Department

CS 454: Principles of Programming Languages, Spring 2008

Web site under construction

• Instructor: Prof. J. Bieman, bieman(at)cs.colostate.edu
• Class Times: T+Th, 3:35-4:50PM; first week scheduled in Shepardson 120 Room 110. Starting in the second week we will use Forestry 107.
• Office Hours: To Be Announced and by appointment.
• Syllabus
• Required Texts:
  • Daniel P. Friedman, Mithell Wand, Christopher T. Haynes. Essentials of Programming Languages, Second Edition
  • Richard Kelsey, William Clinger, and Jonathan Rees (Eds.). Revised(5) Report on the Algorithmic Language Scheme (available electronically).
  • Expect other references, which should be available electronically.
• Reference Texts (optional):
  • Daniel P. Friedman and Matthias Felleisen. The Little Schemer, Fourth Edition.
  • Others will be announced.
• Prerequisites: CS 253 and CS301.
• The Computer Science Department Student Information Sheet
• Brief Description of the course: The course covers programming language principles emphasizing language design concepts, semantics, and interpreters. Study of language features and major programming paradigms, especially functional programming.

  We will study the semantics of programming languages through interpreters that implement the language. To make it more interesting, these interpreters will be implemented in the functional language Scheme, a dialect of Lisp. Thus, the course will give students an opportunity to use a language that is not part of the C, C++, Java family of languages. There is also a research project designed to give students knowledge and experiences in another new programming language.

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