computer science

PEARL (programming language)

PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) rather than just read about it. In short: PEARL, or Process and experiment automation realtime language, is a computer programming language designed for multitasking and real-time programming. Being a high-level language, it is fairly cross-platform.

Key takeaways

PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of PEARL (programming language) from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

PEARL, or Process and experiment automation realtime language, is a computer programming language designed for multitasking and real-time programming. Being a high-level language, it is fairly cross-platform. Since 1977, the language has undergone several standardization iterations by the Deutsches Institut für Normung. The current version is PEARL-90, which was standardized in 1998 as DIN 66253-2.

Features PEARL supports both fixed-point and floating-point numeric values, character and character string data as well as bit values. It also provides facilities for structures and multi-dimensional arrays. Both typed and untyped pointers are also supported, along with typecasting. PEARL is a higher level programming language, which allows comfortable, secure and almost processor independent programming of multitasking and realtime solutions. It has been standardized since 1977 at various stages of its development. The last time was in 1998 as PEARL-90 (DIN 66253-2 1998, Berlin, Beuth-Verlag, 1998). Besides the simple possibility to map process technical problems, an important principle in the development of PEARL was ease of learning by the programmer. All basic data types and language structures of other procedural programming languages exist in PEARL. In addition PEARL offers comfortable language elements for the handling of multitasking- and realtime tasks. Like most other high-level languages, PEARL supports procedures and functions, and passing parameters to these can be done by value or by reference (via pointers).

Example

External links PEARL 90 - Language Report (PDF) OpenPEARL on SourceForge

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with PEARL (programming language)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language)

In research: PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) 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: PEARL (programming language) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Procedural programming languages, Programming language topic stubs, Programming languages created in 1977, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language) out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is PEARL (programming language) in simple terms?

Why does PEARL (programming language) 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 PEARL (programming language)?

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 PEARL (programming language).