Understanding Computation
#2065 of 2,654 all-time
Understanding Computation
Tom Stuart
3 people recommended it in 3 threads, 2013–2019.
What people on Hacker News said
Not "fundamental" as a deep textbook, but very approachable for programmers intro into a big chunk of CS, explaining deep ideas about languages using rigorous working clean code (in Ruby, no prior knowledge needed).
I especially loved the first few chapters about what it means to define a programming languange and various kinds of formal semantics.
Not finished it yet, but it's a joy to read and explains fundamental concepts of things like parsers, interpreters and Lambda Calculus using minimal Ruby syntax.
Where it comes up
- Ask HN: What are the most fundamental books on computer science? 2019 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: What's the best computer science book you've read recently? 2017 · 1 recommendation
- Ask HN: Which book are you reading? 2013 · 1 recommendation