Clojure Gazette 148: Performance, Learning, Eventual Consistency

Written by Eric Normand. Published: November 2, 2015.

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Performance, Learning, Eventual Consistency

Clojure
Gazette

Issue 148 - November 2, 2015

Hi Clojurists,

I'm constantly reminded of how difficult programming is. Our languages start out high in complexity. And there is so much opportunity to increase the accidental complexity of our software. And that's on top of the essential complexity of the domains we deal with. One of my main tricks as a programmer is to keep one of my mental cores busy looking for ways to remove complexity. It really helps because complexity doesn't add up---it multiplies. So one dedicated core reducing complexity might save three or four cores of accidental complexity.

I'm not an awesome programmer. I know people who can keep the whole stack in their heads at once. I can't. I have to reduce the number of things I have to keep in my head or I can't solve the problem. That's one of the reasons I like Clojure. Its not perfect. It's not the best I can imagine. But there are many choices that free my brain up to think about the practical problems in life.

Rock on!

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Clojure Remote CFP

Clojure Remote is the first online conference for Clojure. The CFP is now open. This is your chance to speak! Share your Clojure knowledge.

Designing for Performance Youtube

Martin Thompson presents the hard truths about programming for performance, regardless of the language.

Fun with Lambdas Youtube

Corey Haines shows how to build Peano numbers using only lambda calculus. It's written in an easy to follow style in Ruby.

Learning How to Learn Youtube

Barbara Oakley is amazing. She explains the neuroscience behind learning in such an easy to understand way. Anyone who needs to learn should watch this.

An Opinionated Review of Clojure Applied

Stuart Sierra reviews Clojure Applied. I agree with most of this. It's an excellent book and if you've been considering getting it, this may help you decide if it's right for you.

:clojureD CFP

clojureD is a cool conference in Germany. Their CFP is open so submit your Clojure talks.

Kolmogorov Music Youtube

Chris Ford again uses music to dazzle the audience.

Christopher Meiklejohn on Functional Geekery

A great episode of the Functional Geekery interviewing Christopher Meiklejohn. Topics include how he got into distributed systems, Lasp, and eventual consistency.

Head First Java

After so many years, this book is still the best book teaching programming ever. It is a case study in how a book can teach hard concepts and engage the brain.