You read way too much into my comment. I wasn't trolling.
My position is that if you're involved in computing in any capacity, you will have to learn countless formalisms and languages. And S-expressions are on the more accessible end of the spectrum.
If you and I learned it, so can others. Exclusively seeking out C-like syntaxes will only hinder you, professionally.
P.S. SICP introduces all the Lisp you will need as it goes. Really.
I'm going to support mahmud here, and suggest that your behavior is the least constructive in this particular sub-thread. He's absolutely right that Lisp is simple and the basic rules can be picked up in an hour or two. He's also right that over the course of a career in computing, you'll have to pick up countless formalisms and languages. Additionally, SICP is not for the faint of heart. It is not an easy text, and the use of Lisp is fairly central to its main point. This is not to say that computing shouldn't be accessible. It definitely should be. That being said, SICP covers intrinsically "difficult" material. There's no substitute for an iota of determination here. If you don't have the determination (not intelligence) to be bothered to learn Lisp, you're not going to be able to complete SICP. It's not going to happen.
My position is that if you're involved in computing in any capacity, you will have to learn countless formalisms and languages. And S-expressions are on the more accessible end of the spectrum.
If you and I learned it, so can others. Exclusively seeking out C-like syntaxes will only hinder you, professionally.
P.S. SICP introduces all the Lisp you will need as it goes. Really.