The Unfortunate Spacing of Brackets, Braces, and Angle Brackets in ASCII

Have you ever wondered why brackets (), braces {}, and angle brackets <> are not adjacent in the ASCII code? This peculiar layout in the ASCII standard, designed decades ago, has intrigued programmers and developers. In this article, we will delve into the potential reasons behind the non-adjacent placement of these important symbols, exploring their history and the rationale behind their design.

Historical Background

The ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) standard has been a cornerstone of computing for over half a century. The current version, ASCII-1963, includes a total of 128 characters, each assigned a specific code point. However, the apparent lack of adjacency for certain symbols, such as brackets and braces, has sparked curiosity and sparked several theories.

The Case of Brackets and Angle Brackets

Let's start with the pairing of left and right brackets and angle brackets. These symbols are not simply adjacent in the ASCII code. Specifically, ( and ) are 40 and 41 respectively, while are 60 and 62. This non-adjacency might seem unintuitive, but it has historical precedence.

Why Aren't Brackets, Braces, and Angle Brackets Adjacent?

From what we can gather, there are a few potential explanations for this puzzle:

Historical Reasons

In the 1960s, the committee responsible for designing ASCII had to make decisions about where to place the various symbols. For instance, the design of brackets and angle brackets ( and ) can be traced back to earlier programming languages.

In 1961, both ARPANET and Algol (ALGOL 60) programmers introduced new characters. The characters [ and ] were added to the standard for use in ALGOL programming. Furthermore, the angle brackets <> were also introduced for similar purposes. It appears that the committee may have chosen to place [ in the middle, possibly for visual symmetry, as it was between ( and ).

Mathematical Comparisons with COBOL

COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language) introduced mathematical comparison symbols in 1960. These symbols, such as , were placed in logical order (less than, greater than). Additionally, was placed for equality, making the sequence intuitive for mathematical purposes.

Logical Symmetry and Order

The committee for ASCII may have also considered logical symmetry when placing symbols. For example, the order of symbols within the brackets ((), {}) parallels the order of comparison symbols (, ). This symmetry might have been aesthetically pleasing and reinforced logical sequences for programmers.

Practical Considerations

There could be practical reasons for the placement of these symbols. For instance, certain characters were chosen to avoid collisions with other common symbols, especially when interfacing with older systems. Additionally, placement may have been influenced by the practicality of keyboard layout and the ease of typing certain characters.

Conclusion

While the exact reasoning for the non-adjacency of brackets, braces, and angle brackets in ASCII may never be fully known, it is clear that the standard was designed with consideration for multiple factors. The layout reflects a blend of historical practices, logical symmetry, and practical considerations. Understanding these nuances can provide insight into the development of computing and the challenges faced by early programmers.

For more information on ASCII and other programming symbols, please refer to the sources and resources available online.