Lambda Calculus

Synopsis

Lambda calculus is one of several mathematical descriptions of computation. It is extremely important in programming language research, as it is small (making proofs about things written in it easier to write) and complete (meaning that the results are actually applicable to “real” languages).

The notation may take a bit of getting used to, but you have already used everything in it.

Links

Videos

• Lambda Calculus
• Lambda Calculus Examples
• Evaluation Order
• Church Numerals

Activities

• Lambda Calculus Activity (TPS version)
• Lambda Calculus Activity (POGIL version)
• Lambda Calculus Activity Walkthrough (Spring 2021)

Further Reading

• Lambda Calculus Writeup (PDF, better formatting)

Interesting Links

• Alligator Eggs A game for teaching lambda calculus to children.