More link dumping

Happy second day of spring.

• Classp: a “classier” way to parse

  Recently, we opened up the source code for Classp, a side-project a few of us have been working on that demonstrates it’s possible to have an automatic parser generator that is not based on formal grammars. Instead of grammar productions, you write classes similar to C++ or Java and you write class patterns to define the syntax. Although there are libraries like Boost.Spirit and Scala Parsers that give you a nice way to write a grammar in the programming language itself, in the end you are still writing a grammar. Even though Classp looks a lot like C++ or Java, it is not just a C-like way to write a grammar. It’s an entirely different way to specify syntax.

• Greece’s debt crisis: How did we get here?

  Our story begins in June 2000, a year and a half before all the Deutschmarks and French francs and Italian lire and Spanish pesetas were to be eradicated forever, and converted into euros. That was the date at which 11 became 12: Greece was invited to be one of the select dozen countries who would be part of the euro at its inception.

• An Eleven Year-Old’s Guide to Plane-Spotting

  Plane-spotting is when you identify any sort of aircraft and, if you want, keep a log of the type of aircraft, the time, and the date, and maybe any other interesting things like a bird, or a really good apple that you’re eating (I stress again that the log is optional). If you are watching commercial aircraft you should try to identify the airline, too. I take photos of the airplanes for fun as well.

• The Longest Hearthstone Turn Ever Is Happening Right Now

  “Lorewalker Cho” is a legendary creature card that alters the rules so that when either player casts a spell, it puts a copy of that spell into the other player’s hand. And “Mind Vision,” when played, copies a random card in your opponent’s hand and puts it in your hand. If both players work together using these cards, they could generate many additional copies of cards that normally would be limited to a single use.

• Imagine a Slightly Different Announcement from Ted Cruz

  Imagine an American Muslim man stands in front of an audience of 10,000 Muslims at a college in Virginia to announce that he's running for president.