Learning and Teaching Functional Programming with Adolfo Neto

Nov 23, 2021

Adolfo Neto, programmer and educator, shares his journey into computer science, teaching at the university level, and his passion for functional programming. He discusses the impact of Elixir, diversity in the tech field, and resources for learning Elixir. Adolfo's goal is to diversify the computer science field and help the Elixir community grow.

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Introduction

00:00 • 2min

Unexpected Journey into Teaching

02:06 • 9min

Teaching Functional Programming and Encouraging Women in Computer Science

11:13 • 20min

Exploring Raleigh's Diversity and Cultural Contrasts

30:58 • 5min

Elixir Community and Learning Resources

35:32 • 9min

Casual Chat About Trees, Social Media Presence, and Humorous Discoveries

44:12 • 2min

Encouraging Movement and Company Promotion

45:59 • 2min

Today we are joined by programmer, professor, educator, and podcaster, Adolfo Neto! We have a fascinating conversation that continues our exploration of the theme of the impact of Elixir, hearing from Adolfo about his early attraction to computers and computer science, the decision to study the subject, and how this led to a life in education and academia. We also talk about growing up in Brazil and how geography influenced his career trajectory, before getting into some of the main outlets that Adolfo uses to share information on functional programming. He also comments on what he loves about Elixir, why learning it can improve any programmer's skills, and much more. One of Adolfo's main goals with his podcasts and YouTube channel is the diversification of the computer science field, and to bring the subject to a wider audience that may not always consider it an option to pursue. Towards the end of our chat, our guest shares some thoughts on useful resources to check out, and his desire to help the Elixir community to continue to grow!

Key Points From This Episode:

Opening remarks and rants from Adolfo regarding Livebook!
Adolfo's route into teaching and how he became a university professor.
Information on Adolfo's Ph.D. program which he completed at the University of São Paulo.
The initial impetus to study computer science; what drew Adolfo to the field.
Adolfo's YouTube channels and the subjects he covers for his audience.
The course that Adolfo offers on Elixir to students all over the world!
How Adolfo found and learned about functional programming.
Adolfo's thoughts on the benefits of different functional programming languages.
The main goals that Adolfo has for his functional programming classes.
Adolfo's own forays into podcasting, and what drew him to the medium!
Experiences in the South; Adolfo's early days studying the US.
Recommended resources for learning Elixir; the books and sites that Adolfo uses.
Adolfo's hopes for Elixir to keep growing and why he prefers functional programming.
How to connect with Adolfo online and make use of some of his amazing content!

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

SmartLogic — https://smartlogic.io/
Adolfo Neto on Twitter — https://twitter.com/adolfont
Adolfo Neto on YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/c/AdolfoNeto
Livebook — https://livebook.dev/#install
Fly.io — https://fly.io/
BASIC — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BASIC
ML (programming language) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ML_(programming_language)
Emílias on Twitter — https://twitter.com/emilias_utfpr
Elixir em Foco on Twitter — https://twitter.com/elixiremfoco
Seven Languages in Seven Weeks — https://www.amazon.com/Seven-Languages-Weeks-Programming-Programmers/dp/193435659X
Clojure — https://clojure.org/
Laurie Williams — https://collaboration.csc.ncsu.edu/laurie/
Saša Jurić — https://www.theerlangelist.com/
Brujo Benavides on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/elbrujohalcon?originalSubdomain=es
Elixir School — https://elixirschool.com/en/
Exercism Elixir Track — https://exercism.org/tracks/elixir
Exercism Erlang Track — https://exercism.org/tracks/erlang

Special Guest: Adolfo Neto.