"When I see Code that isn't Functional, I cringe a little"

Mark Chu-Carroll on functional programming:

At Google, we generally program in three languages: C++, Java, and Python. None of them are functional languages: all are state-heavy, imperative, object-oriented languages. But the more I've read and written code in this code-base, the more I've found that functional code is the best way of building large things. When I look at a piece of code, if the code is basically functional, I've found that it's much easier to understand, much easier to test, and much less likely to produce painful bugs. It's gotten to the point where when I see code that isn't functional, I cringe a little. Almost everything that I write ends up being at least mostly functional - the places where I use non-functional code, it's because the language and compiler aren't up to the task of keeping the code efficient.

Read the whole article here.

Sawfly

From back in the middle of the summer, an orange and black sawfly.  At first I thought this was Arge sp. but I have just noticed that it has too many segments in its antennae (about 8, as opposed to the 3 that Arge have), so I now think it is Athalia sp. (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae).  The black coloration on the thorax does seem to be quite variable in these orange and black sawfly species.

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-07-14.

Hoverfly on Oak Leaf

A hoverfly, probably Syrphus vitripennis (Diptera: Syrphidae).  The fact that there is a noticable gap between the eyes indicates that this is probably a female, and the females of S. vitripennis have rear femurs that are mostly dark, while in the similar S. ribesii their rear femurs are all yellow.

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-09-06.

Hoverfly on Ragwort

A hoverfly, probably Myathropa florea (Diptera: Syrphidae), on ragwort (Jacobaea vulgaris=Senecio jacobaea).

[Note added 2011-11-20: I now think that this is probably an Eristalis sp.]

The name of this species is occasionally spelt M. florae, that is with the 'a' before the 'e'.  I am not sure whether this is a proper synonym or just a mistake (this form is used in Complete British Insects by Michael Chinery, Collins, 2005). 

I am also not entirely sure about the identification; the legs seem a bit too dark and the 'knee'-joints lack the light colouring that is shown in most photos of M. florea.  The following photo better shows the wing venation and the patterns on the upper surface of the abdomen and thorax.

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-09-24.

Fleabane

From a few months back, fleabane (Pulicaria dysenterica).  The leaves look like this:

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2009-08-12.