“Although mathematical notation undoubtedly possesses parsing rules, they are rather loose, sometimes contradictory, and seldom clearly stated. […] The proliferation of programming languages shows no more uniformity than mathematics. Nevertheless, programming languages do bring a different perspective. […] Because of their application to a broad range of topics, their strict grammar, and their strict interpretation, programming languages can provide new insights into mathematical notation.”

—  Kenneth E. Iverson

Source: Math for the Layman (1999), Ch. 10, §D

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Kenneth E. Iverson12
Canadian computer scientist 1920–2004

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