Notes for the book 'Seven Languages in Seven Weeks' by Bruce A. Tate.
The introduction goes through the presentation of the book and how you may want to approach learning from it, along with general information about why each language was chosen because of their features, (1)typing model, and/or (2)programming model.
(1) The typing model shapes the way you attack a problem and controls the way a language works. There can be strong/weak or static/dynamic typing.
(2) The programming model tells you if the language is functional, Object Oriented (OO), or procedural.
Tate suggests that when learning a new language/framework to look for a quick interactive tool. This allows for experiencing the language in a controlled and guided way, or you can go off script and explore on your own.
When choosing the languages (and learning them!), think about design constructs, core data structures, and core features which make the language unique, such as BEAM in Erlang.
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An important quote from Tate for learning the languages in the book (or any new language) that stuck out for me was:
"If you look online for the answers before trying to code the exercises yourself, you'll fail. You will want to try the exercises first, fully recognizing that you'll fail a few of them. Learning syntax is always easier than learning reasoning"