Can Ada replace FORTRAN for numerical computation?

Abstract

In July 1980, the proposed final form of the Ada programming language was released by the U.S. Department of Defense [1]. Even though Ada was not designed specifically for general numeric scientific computation, nevertheless the question arises to whether it is appropriate for this purpose. This question can best be answered by consideration of the following question: Is Ada a suitable replacement for the programming language FORTRAN? This paper discusses those constructs of Ada which are pertinent to the matter and are considered defective. It is noted that the array defects are exceptionally critical, not providing needed capabilities that exist in FORTRAN and have been extensively used for a quarter century.

The comparison and selection of programming languages for high energy physics applications

“…It is especially strong in demanding a clarity of exposition of the data neering. It has the best ability of the candidate languages to hide data and rou Ada was obviously designed with conscious emphasis on sound software engi ent floating point arithmetics [26].…”

“…Real data types are defined within the package if required. Ada offers extended capabilities in the area of bit manipu are not defined within the language, but viewed as an extension in an Ada sentation needed for multi-dimensional arrays [26]. Intrinsic array operations page 8 capable of abstracting most ofthe computer-oriented ideas that one physicist wished came about because it was the best approximation to the general purpose language,…”