Scientific programming in Fortran

Issue title: Fortran Programming Language and Scientific Programming: 50 Years of Mutual Growth

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Van Snyder, W.

Affiliations: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA

Note: [] Author's current address: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Mail Stop 183-701, Pasadena, CA 91109-8099, USA. E-mail: van.snyder@jpl.nasa.gov

Abstract: The Fortran programming language was designed by John Backus and his colleagues at IBM to reduce the cost of programming scientific applications. IBM delivered the first compiler for its model 704 in 1957. IBM's competitors soon offered incompatible versions. ANSI (ASA at the time) developed a standard, largely based on IBM's Fortran IV in 1966. Revisions of the standard were produced in 1977, 1990, 1995 and 2003. Development of a revision, scheduled for 2008, is under way. Unlike most other programming languages, Fortran is periodically revised to keep pace with developments in language and processor design, while revisions largely preserve compatibility with previous versions. Throughout, the focus on scientific programming, and especially on efficient generated programs, has been maintained.

Journal: Scientific Programming, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 3-8, 2007