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From: davis@ilog.fr (Harley Davis)
Subject: Re: Q: Is Lisp obsolete?
In-Reply-To: 's message of Fri, 7 Apr 1995 05:09:45 GMT
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References: <92582.larso171@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Date: 07 Apr 1995 11:52:01 GMT


In article <92582.larso171@maroon.tc.umn.edu> <larso171@maroon.tc.umn.edu> writes:

   The disadvantage of Lisp is that it is slow executing, and
   certainly that is a disadvantage in very heavy numerically
   computational work involved in most evolutionary programming
   approaches.  So it seems that Lisp is not well - suited for a final
   product.

Almost all Lisps today have a good compiler along with an interpreter;
they also have ways to call functions written in languages such as C
or C++.  So one appropriate way to structure a GP system in Lisp would
be to compile the primitives and framework, or write them in C(++),
and to use the Lisp interpreter for generated genomes.

   I'm very interested in what others think about Lisp in evolutionary
   programming work.  Do you use a different language for prototyping
   ideas than the one (presumably C/C++?) for final "production" code?

I used C++ for my Imogene GP program, but that's only because I wanted
to learn C++.  My prototype was in Lisp.  I would have used Lisp for
the final version if I hadn't had ulterior motives.  As it was I spent
substantial time writing a rather poor imitation of a Lisp interpreter
in C++ to construct and interpret genomes.

-- Harley Davis

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