Introduced twelve years ago, Clojure is ranked #48 in the TIOBE index, an indicator of the popularity of a programming language based on search engine results and overall usage. The language is designed for multi-thread programming. Clojure is a functional programming language that combines accessibility and simplicity.
Functional programming languages are ideal for programmers who have a background in mathematics, this is because a functional programming language involves computing in terms of evaluating mathematical functions. They treat functions and data as immutable, that is you pass data into a function and it generally returns that data transformed into some other type of data. In any functional programming, the function should never change the original data or program state.
Unlike any object-oriented language that encapsulates data, Clojure doesn’t package data in layers of class definitions, inheritance and type declarations. The programming language allows developers to create entire information models using built-in immutable data structures. The developers working on Clojure can grow their data-loaded programs while the team tests software and fixes bugs. The language is specifically designed for Java Virtual Machine (JVM), common language runtime, and JavaScript engines.
Immutable Data Structures
The easiest way to avoid mutating state while coding is to use immutable data structures. Clojure offers a set of immutable lists, vectors, sets, and maps. It is powered by the multicore processing power common across servers and helps in sequentially running multiple operations on multiple cores. Consecutive calling methods are better than running operations one at a time.
Immutable data structures assure that all the possible properties of objects are defined at the time of their construction. The language is well-suited to developing multithreaded programs. Programmers can even ensure cost-effective execution in communication within each set of instructions.
Development environments
Clojure offers a wide range of tools to bring out the best from this programming language. The dynamic system offers ability to redefine functions, multi-methods, type hierarchies, and also method implementations.
The implementation approach offers high degree of experimentation and exploration, which is often quite basic in static languages. Whether the programmers face single or multithreaded issues, Clojure has the right tools to ensure code clarity.
The Emacs text editor connects the code with the language shell, which is also known as read/evaluate/print loop. Clojure also offers a JavaScript compiler called ClojureScript, which is well suited for single-page applications that target web-based user experience similar to the desktop application.