Lex Fridman Podcast #109 – Brian Kernighan: UNIX, C, AWK, AMPL, and Go Programming
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Jul 18, 2020 Brian Kernighan, a renowned professor at Princeton and co-author of 'The C Programming Language,' dives into the fascinating history of Unix and its evolution from proprietary to open-source. He discusses the artistry versus science debate in programming and highlights innovative languages like AWK, AMPL, and Go. Kernighan shares insights on learning new languages, the impact of programming on communication, and reflections on the early days of AI, merging nostalgia with a vision for the future of technology.
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Bell Labs Environment
- Bell Labs was a special place with many PhDs, focused on improving phone service.
- This led to research in various fields, including a growing interest in computing.
Unix Philosophy
- The Unix philosophy focused on creating an easy and productive programming environment.
- This fostered a community where programmers could easily share and build upon each other's work.
Early Unix Programming
- Kernighan recalls that programming on early Unix was fun because of the quick feedback loop.
- He enjoyed building things that others would use, even if they complained.
