--- title: "3 Computer science Quotes By Tony Hoare" description: "3 Computer science quotes by Tony Hoare. Plus more from Tony Hoare and more Computer science sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9c/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is_1174824.png" --- > [The unavoidable price of reliability is simplicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is-simplicity/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9c/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is_1174824.png) > [ What is the central core of the subject \[computer science\]? What is it that distinguishes it from the separate subjects with which… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/what-is-the-central-core-of-the-subject-computer-science-what-is-it/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18f/tony-hoare-25834_accurate_what-is-the-central-core-of-the-subject_1203244.jpg) > [Premature optimization is the root of all evil in programming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/premature-optimization-is-the-root-of-all-evil-in-programming/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_premature-optimization-is-the-root-of-al_2978439.png) ## Other authors on Computer science - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b010/author-frederick-lenz-36205.jpg) Frederick Lenz 24 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/frederick-lenz/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b008/author-donald-knuth-30007.jpg) Donald Knuth 9 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/donald-knuth/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-alfred-e-perlman-11279.jpg) Kimberly Bryant 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/kimberly-bryant/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b005/author-bill-gates-17911.jpg) Bill Gates 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/bill-gates/) - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-alan-kay-10336.jpg) Alan Kay 5 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/alan-kay/) ## More by Tony Hoare > [Programmers are always surrounded by complexity; we cannot avoid it… If our basic tool, the language in which we design and code our programs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/programmers-are-always-surrounded-by-complexity-we-cannot-avoid-it-if/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [The job of formal methods is to elucidate the assumptions upon which formal correctness depends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/the-job-of-formal-methods-is-to-elucidate-the-assumptions-upon-which/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [A single human brain has about a hundred million nerve cells... and a computer program that throws light on the mind/brain problem will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/a-single-human-brain-has-about-a-hundred-million-nerve-cells-and-a/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [I don't know what the language of the year 2000 will look like, but I know it will be called Fortran.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/i-don-t-know-what-the-language-of-the-year-2000-will-look-like-but-i/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [You cannot teach beginners top-down programming, because they don't know which end is up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/you-cannot-teach-beginners-top-down-programming-because-they-don-t/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [An ultimate joint challenge for the biological and the computational sciences is the understanding of the mechanisms of the human brain, and its relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/an-ultimate-joint-challenge-for-the-biological-and-the-computational/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [The unavoidable price of reliability is simplicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is-simplicity/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [ What is the central core of the subject \[computer science\]? What is it that distinguishes it from the separate subjects with which it is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/what-is-the-central-core-of-the-subject-computer-science-what-is-it/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [The real value of tests is not that they detect bugs in the code but that they detect inadequacies in the methods, concentration, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/the-real-value-of-tests-is-not-that-they-detect-bugs-in-the-code-but/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [Inside every large program is a small program struggling to get out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/inside-every-large-program-is-a-small-program-struggling-to-get-out/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [Here is a language so far ahead of its time, that it was not only an improvement on its predecessors, but also on nearly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/here-is-a-language-so-far-ahead-of-its-time-that-it-was-not-only-an/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [I call it my billion-dollar mistake. It was the invention of the null reference in 1965.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/i-call-it-my-billion-dollar-mistake-it-was-the-invention-of-the-null/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [It is easy to predict that some of the discoveries of research directed towards Grand Challenges - but only the most unexpected ones, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/it-is-easy-to-predict-that-some-of-the-discoveries-of-research/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [There are two methods in software design. One is to make the program so simple, there are obviously no errors. The other is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/there-are-two-methods-in-software-design-one-is-to-make-the-program/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [Some problems are better evaded than solved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/some-problems-are-better-evaded-than-solved/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computer-science/tony-hoare/#itemlist", "name": "3 Computer science Quotes By Tony Hoare", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The unavoidable price of reliability is simplicity.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tony Hoare" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is-simplicity/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9c/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is_1174824.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9c/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is_1174824.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9c/tony-hoare-25834_computer-language_the-unavoidable-price-of-reliability-is_1174824.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The unavoidable price of reliability is simplicity.” — Tony Hoare", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What is the central core of the subject [computer science]? 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