Student Presentations: More Information

As you prepare your presentation, you should make sure to cover the following information:

• Why was this language developed in the first place?
• What tradeoffs in language design did the developers face?
• How does the syntax of the language reflect the answers to the above questions? Use code examples to demonstrate. The TPK algorithm by Knuth and Pardo, for example, demonstrates well how an imperative algorithm might be coded. It would thus could be a good example to demonstrate FORTRAN, since FORTRAN was designed for mathematical coding. SIMULA, on the other hand, is often credited as the first object-oriented language. The TPK algorithm doesn't demonstrate object-oriented programming.

The companion CD that comes with your textbook has a Resources section with many languages and links for them. You may find this useful. There are undoubtedly other useful resources on the web and in the library as well.

You should also prepare a handout for the class that is a reference card, or "cheat sheet," for the language itself. It should be no more than two sides of a sheet of paper, and should include the basic language syntax and some examples. Make sure to include your references on here as well.

I will be grading the reference cards and the presentations on content as well as presentation. Keep in mind that the talk is only 10 minutes - you should choose an appropriate amount of material for such a short timeframe. I am happy to talk with you in advance to help balance appropriate content for your talk, if you wish.

The first two presentations are crucial, as we will discuss their pros and cons in class. I promise to be tasteful in my comments! I will grade the first two presentations more leniently.

Here is the "checklist" that I will use when grading the presentations:

• Did the students adequately explain the motivation for developing the language?
• Did the students adequately explain the tradeoffs in design inherent in the language, and what effect the language motivation had on these tradeoffs?
• Were the code samples chosen appropriately to show off the distinctive nature of the language?
• Did the students choose an appropriate amount of material for a 10 minute talk (not too light, not too heavy)?

Good luck!