computer science

Klerer–May System

Klerer–May System is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Klerer–May System rather than just read about it. In short: The Klerer–May System is a programming language developed in the mid-1960s, oriented to numerical scientific programming, whose most notable feature is its two-dimensional syntax based on traditional mathematical notation. For input and output, the Klerer–May system used a Friden Flexowriter modified to allow half-line motions for subscripts and superscripts.

Key takeaways

Klerer–May System belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Klerer–May System to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Klerer–May System from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Klerer–May System is a programming language developed in the mid-1960s, oriented to numerical scientific programming, whose most notable feature is its two-dimensional syntax based on traditional mathematical notation.

For input and output, the Klerer–May system used a Friden Flexowriter modified to allow half-line motions for subscripts and superscripts. The character set included digits, upper-case letters, subsets of 14 lower-case Latin letters and 18 Greek letters, arithmetic operators (+ − × / |) and punctuation (. , ( )), and eight special line-drawing characters (resembling ╲ ╱ ⎜ _ ⎨ ⎬ ˘ ⁔) used to construct multi-line brackets and symbols for summation, products, roots, and for multi-line division or fractions. The system was intended to be forgiving of input mistakes, and easy to learn; its reference manual was only two pages. The system was developed by Melvin Klerer and Jack May at Columbia University's Hudson Laboratories in Dobbs Ferry, New York, for the Office of Naval Research, and ran on GE-200 series computers.

References

Further reading Klerer, Melvin; May, Jack (May 1964). "An Experiment in a User-oriented Computer System". Commun. ACM. 7 (5): 290–294. doi:10.1145/364099.364266. S2CID 14606272. Klerer, Melvin; May, Jack (1965). "Two-dimensional Programming". Proceedings of the November 30--December 1, 1965, Fall Joint Computer Conference, Part I. Fall Joint Computer Conference. Las Vegas, Nevada: ACM. pp. 63–75. doi:10.1145/1463891.1463897. Klerer, Melvin; Grossman, Fred (November 1967). "Further Advances in Two-dimensional Input-output by Typewriter Terminals". Proceedings of the November 14–16, 1967, Fall Joint Computer Conference. Fall Joint Computer Conference. Anaheim, California: ACM. pp. 675–687. doi:10.1145/1465611.1465701.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Klerer–May System

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Klerer–May System claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Klerer–May System before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Klerer–May System ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Klerer–May System

In research: Klerer–May System appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Klerer–May System in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Klerer–May System is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics History of computing, Procedural programming languages, Programming languages created in the 1960s, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Klerer–May System outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Klerer–May System in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Klerer–May System means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Klerer–May System out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Klerer–May System in simple terms?

Why does Klerer–May System matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Klerer–May System?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Klerer–May System.