Russ Olsen

In this engaging discussion, Russ Olsen, an author and software engineer known for his work on Lisp and functional programming, joins James Lewis, a director at Thoughtworks. They delve into the challenges of teaching functional programming, emphasizing the need for relatable examples over abstract math. Russ shares insights on Clojure's unique data-centric design and how it contrasts with traditional object-oriented approaches. The duo also discusses paradigm shifts in programming and how moments of shared purpose, like the Apollo moon landing, can inspire engineers.