amen zwa, esq.<p>To my <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/CS" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>CS</span></a> <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/professor" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>professor</span></a> friends on MathsTodon.xyz: what <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/programming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>programming</span></a> languages are you teaching as the "proper first language" to your freshmen, and what are the delights and dismays thereof?</p><p>Some 30y ago, I taught C and ML to the CS undergrads—my two favourite classic languages. But, boy, they were a handful to teach to novices. But then, you lot might well have an easier task now, given that a typical CS freshman today knows several languages already (at least <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/Python" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Python</span></a> and/or <a href="https://mathstodon.xyz/tags/JavaScript" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>JavaScript</span></a>🤦♂️), by the time they enter the uni.</p>