Folks are fond of asserting the computing is lost without math. Yet probably the vast majority of it is written without formalisms of any kind. And the world is still here.
So, if all it takes is for programming languages to be 'formalism', then pedantically speaking, we're all doing it right. Thanks! My programs are all correct now?
"Formalism" is a fancy word for saying that a system has to have an agreed upon shape - hence form. Programming languages have structure - you can't just type random text, there is a specific syntax, with specific semantic rules based on what you type.
So all I'm saying is that you are working in a formal system, and you are creating formal logic. Every day.
That has nothing to do with correctness. In logic, there is a difference between validity and soundness. A valid argument is one that is in a proper form. You can make valid arguments that are completely untrue.
A sound argument is one that is valid and also happens to be true. It's trivial to create a valid program - it either compiles or is executable by the interpreter. But that has nothing to do with soundness.
It's quite ironic. The unwillingness to understand something, such as math and logic in this case, leads to criticizing it. You can't evaluate what you don't understand.
I did, using the word 'formalism' to perhaps inaccurately describe all the formalisms just discussed (proofs etc). Then it went off into the weeds on that word, which was not helpful.
