this post was submitted on 08 Oct 2023
1112 points (96.7% liked)
Programmer Humor
19809 readers
262 users here now
Welcome to Programmer Humor!
This is a place where you can post jokes, memes, humor, etc. related to programming!
For sharing awful code theres also Programming Horror.
Rules
- Keep content in english
- No advertisements
- Posts must be related to programming or programmer topics
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
There's no ISO standardized definition for variable. People use that word with all kinds of meaning.
Waaaait a minute... isn't it called a variable because the contents are, you know, variable?
It started as a variable, then ended as a constant.
This is needlessly obtuse. The definition of the word is that it's non-constant. There isn't an ISO definition of the word no, but there are many reputable dictionaries out there that will serve as an alternative.
Well, starting with the definition from algebra, where it's not something allowed to vary...
I guess more people know about math than use imperative programing languages.
Except that's exactly what it is allowed to in algebra.
Sure, in most equations you solve in early algebra school there is only one possible value for the variables. But in many equations there can be multiple, or even infinite. It's an unknown, and the contents can vary (depending on other constraints, ie. The rest of the equation(s)).
There's no time in algebra for your variables to vary.
When you have a non-unitary set of solutions, you have a constant non-unitary set of solutions.