Ah, I see. I'm no expert, but I'd argue the response is "Maybe".
I think this is what blaze and pypy try to do with python: they compile it so that certain things are optimized. The harder part is that you have to generally hint for the compiler to truly be the best...
WRT to just why not use C, python/R/Julia are MUCH easier to prototype in than C (in my opinion, having used those languages). The "grail" is to be able to prototype quickly, and then identify the hotspots to speed up (which, in Julia's case, would be just inlining with C code).
> They can 'compile' in an 'optimized manner' using something else ...
Thats actually the issue Julia attempts to solve as highlighted in the article. There are many languages that you can use to express ideas, but when you need the idea to run as fast as possible, you have to rewrite in C/Fortran/etc and then add bindings to to the language.
Julia lets you write inline C, which I believe means that you can still express algorithms simply, but with some parts (trivially) optimized. (Not a huge julia user, but thats my take on it)
NIMBY is more "Don't use my road, use the road one block over" - in other words, road is the same but not in front of me. Thats a little different than "Don't use my road, use the road that has 3 lanes and no children on it and is labeled for commuting" I feel like there is a difference in that regard; I personally wouldn't want through traffic on my street, but I also don't want it on the streets next to mine either due to how recklessly people drive when trying to beat traffic.
I've noticed though that the perspective matters. If somebody start complaining about how I parked in front of their house, a typical response is: "I can't believe how annoyed this guy is getting over me just parking here for 15 minutes."
The homeowner however doesn't care that its only 15 minutes of your time, since for him/her its probably all day :-/
The interesting thing about a 'diamond' planet is that it would be a waste of time. Diamond's value is superficial - it can't actually be used for anything (except cutting), so mining this planet would essentially cause diamonds to become worthless.
Whats more interesting is a planet made up of rare metals - that would still cause the prices to drop (this assumes the mining can easily generate lots of metal easily, transport costs aside), but can immediately be turned around into something useful.
May sound corny, but I'd have to say "Fostering." If you show interest in something, be it knowledge about a subject or field (or entrepreneurship), they will always make sure you have all the resources you need. Part of this (and has been voiced in some of the other comments) is that they will never block you from learning or exploring something.
Completely agree. The key point is not "applying" these traits, or treating them as "tricks," its simply that the professors there embody that ideal. As an undergrad, it was easy for me to grab 10 minutes of any professor's time, even if it wasn't related to their courses or study. A lot of my classes had over 300 students in them, yet that didn't keep a professor from meeting with me either.
I think this is what blaze and pypy try to do with python: they compile it so that certain things are optimized. The harder part is that you have to generally hint for the compiler to truly be the best...
WRT to just why not use C, python/R/Julia are MUCH easier to prototype in than C (in my opinion, having used those languages). The "grail" is to be able to prototype quickly, and then identify the hotspots to speed up (which, in Julia's case, would be just inlining with C code).