# Little b (programming language)

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Domain specific programming language

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Little b Paradigm functional Designed by Aneil Mallavarapu Developer Harvard Medical School Department of Systems Biology First appeared 2004 Stable release 1.6.0 / September 6, 2008 (2008-09-06) Typing discipline dynamic, strong Website www.littleb.org Major implementations Linux, Mac OS X, Windows Influenced by Lisp

**Little b** is a [domain-specific](/source/Domain-specific_language) [programming language](/source/Programming_language), more specifically, a [modeling language](/source/Modeling_language), designed to build modular [mathematical](/source/Mathematics) models of [biological systems](/source/Systems_biology). It was designed and authored by [Aneil Mallavarapu](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aneil_Mallavarapu&action=edit&redlink=1). Little b is being developed in the Virtual Cell Program at [Harvard Medical School](/source/Harvard_Medical_School), headed by mathematician [Jeremy Gunawardena](/source/Jeremy_Gunawardena).

This language is based on [Lisp](/source/Lisp_(programming_language)) and is meant to allow modular programming to model biological systems. It will allow more flexibility to facilitate rapid change that is required to accurately capture complex biological systems.

The language draws on techniques from artificial intelligence and symbolic mathematics, and provides syntactic conveniences derived from [object-oriented](/source/Object-oriented_programming) languages. The language was originally denoted with a lowercase b (distinguishing it from [B](/source/B_(programming_language)), the predecessor to the widely used [C](/source/C_(programming_language)) programming language), but the name was eventually changed to "little b" to avoid confusion and to pay homage to [Smalltalk](/source/Smalltalk).

## References

- Krieger K. "Life in Silico: A Different Kind of Intelligent Design". *[Science](/source/Science_(journal))*. 312(5771):189–190.

- [https://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2008/07/little-b-project-creates-biology-specific-programming-system/](https://arstechnica.com/uncategorized/2008/07/little-b-project-creates-biology-specific-programming-system/)

- [https://www.computerworld.com/article/2551598/big-things-from-little-b.html](https://www.computerworld.com/article/2551598/big-things-from-little-b.html)

## External links

- [Biology enters 'The Matrix' through new computer language](http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-07/hms-be072108.php) EurekAlert article

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