Domain-Specific Languages of Mathematics: Presenting Mathematical Analysis Using Functional Programming

Abstract

We present the approach underlying a course on "Domain-Specific Languages of Mathematics", currently being developed at Chalmers in response to difficulties faced by third-year students in learning and applying classical mathematics (mainly real and complex analysis). The main idea is to encourage the students to approach mathematical domains from a functional programming perspective: to identify the main functions and types involved and, when necessary, to introduce new abstractions; to give calculational proofs; to pay attention to the syntax of the mathematical expressions; and, finally, to organise the resulting functions and types in domain-specific languages.