Infinite State Machine Poetry in, with, and by Clojure
Eric Weinstein at Clojure/conj 2017
The poet T.S. Eliot believed in the “objective correlative”: the use of a sequence of symbols to evoke an emotion in the reader. Since programs are also sequences of symbols, we can think of poems as emotive programs! In this talk, we’ll use Eliot’s understanding of the objective correlative as a lens to explore the intersection of Clojure and poetry. In the process, we’ll write poems that are executable programs and write Clojure programs that generate poems. You’ll come away with a better understanding of the flexibility and grace of Clojure as a language, as well as a newfound appreciation for modern poetry.