Typically the first step, translation from natural to formal language, will be done by business analysts and programmers. But why not try to let computers help along the way?
Typically the first step, translation from natural to formal language, will be done by business analysts and programmers. But why not try to let computers help along the way?
So he's contesting not only the idea that programs should be specified in natural language, but also the idea that removing our need to understand the formal language would increase our ability to build complex systems.
It's worth noting that much of the "translation" is not translation, but fixing the logical ambiguities, inconsistencies and improper assumptions. Much of it can happen in natural language, if we take Dijkstra seriously, precisely because programmers at the table who have spent their lives formalizing.
There are other professions which require significant formal thinking, such as math. But also, the conversion of old proofs into computer proofs has lead us to discover holes and gaps in many well accepted proofs. Not that much has been overturned, but we still do t have a complete proof for Fermats last theorem [1].
[1] https://xenaproject.wordpress.com/2024/12/11/fermats-last-th...
There has been some efforts to make computer languages with local (non-english) keywords. Most have fortunately already failed horribly.
But it still exists, e.g. in spreadsheet formulas.
In some cases even number formatting (decimal separators) are affected.