Type Theory Forall #49 Self-Education in PL - Ryan Brewer
Mar 14, 2025
Ryan Brewer, a self-taught programming language expert and creator of innovative projects like Saber VM, shares his journey from college dropout to blog writer, dedicated to making formal theory accessible. Joined by researcher Dan Plukin, they discuss the challenges and joys of self-education in programming, the intersection of ethics and technology, and their experiences with compilers. They emphasize the importance of passion in learning and critique traditional academic paths, while encouraging openness in the programming community.
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Ryan's Background
- Ryan Brewer, a college dropout, runs a blog on PL, category theory, and logic.
- His goal is to make formal theory accessible and practical outside academia.
Early PL Interest
- Ryan Brewer's interest in PL began in middle school with Scratch and a desire to create a transferable programming language.
- His dad, a researcher, suggested building a text-based Scratch-like language that compiles.
First Bytecode Interpreter
- In eighth grade, Ryan Brewer created a bytecode interpreter for an Arduino project.
- The interpreter allowed sending messages to the Arduino via serial port to trigger actions.
