74 lines
3.1 KiB
TeX
74 lines
3.1 KiB
TeX
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\chapter{Abstract}
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\thispagestyle{empty}
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The field of programming languages has recently experienced a renaissance,
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especially in the field of untyped scripting languages. But when
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scripts written in untyped languages grow into large programs, they may
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also become difficult to maintain. To improve the maintainability of
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programs in untyped languages, I propose porting portions into
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typed sister languages. To demonstrate the feasibility of this approach, I have
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developed Typed Scheme, a typed variant of PLT Scheme. Typed
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Scheme provides smooth and sound interoperability with untyped PLT
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Scheme; it also features a novel type system that supports idiomatic
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Scheme programming, so that the porting process is relatively
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straightforward. I have validated the effectiveness of Typed Scheme
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by porting thousands of lines of untyped PLT Scheme code.
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\cleardoublepage
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\vspace*{\fill}
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\vspace{-1.5in}
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\begin{center}
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\begin{quote}
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\textit{Why, anybody can have a brain. That's a very mediocre
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commodity. Every pusillanimous creature that crawls on the Earth
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or slinks through slimy seas has a brain. Back where I come
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from, we have universities, seats of great learning, where men
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go to become great thinkers. And when they come out, they think
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deep thoughts and with no more brains than you have. But they
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have one thing you haven't got: a diploma.}
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\hspace*{\fill} --- \textrm{The Wizard of Oz}
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\end{quote}
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\end{center}
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\vspace*{\fill}
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\chapter[Acknowledgments]{Acknowledgments\vspace{-24pt}}
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My original debt is to James D. Jungbauer Jr. and James
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E. Hamblin, who first taught me Scheme at the
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Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth. But to the extent that I am
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more than merely someone who knows some Scheme, the credit is due to
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Matthias Felleisen, the advisor that I needed, and that made me the
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researcher that I am today. Matthias has been wise and impetuous,
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understanding and demanding, and has consistently expected and
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obtained better from me than I myself did.
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In between, I have been assisted by numerous people. Robby Findler
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and Laszlo Babai encouraged me to go to Northeastern. Once there, my
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colleagues have been wonderful resources: Dave Herman, Carl Eastlund,
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Felix Klock, Jesse Tov, Christos Dimoulas, David Van Horn, Aaron
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Turon, Dan Brown and
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many others have pushed me to make my ideas clearer and my thinking
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more precise. Ryan Culpepper, Stevie Strickland and Ivan Gazeau have been
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productive collaborators as well as fellow students. My colleagues at
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Sun Labs: Eric Allen, David Chase, Victor Luchancgo, Christine Flood,
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and Jan-Willem Maessen helped give me a wider perspective
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and fresh ideas. I have also been fortunate to work with Robby Findler
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and Matthew Flatt, both as co-authors and as co-developers. My
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committee, Mitch Wand, Olin Shivers and Guy Steele, have helped improve
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this dissertation.
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All my life, my parents have provided models of what it means to be an
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academic, and they have encouraged me at every step as I have pursued
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that life. One day I hope to live up to their example.
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Finally, my greatest debt is to my wife, Katie Edmonds, for which no
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thanks are enough.
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