I speculate

[serenissima]

The archetypal first program to write when learning a new programming language is one that makes the computer display the words "Hello world." Could this message have something to do with our universal desire to communicate and have our existence acknowledged? Or am I reading too much into things?

Also: here's a series of "Hello world" programs arranged according to the supposed job title of the writer. I enjoyed trying to guess which language each one is written in. I think I'll put my guesses in a comment....

Comments

[403.livejournal.com]

Seasoned professional is using one of the C languages. Java uses "import" not "#include". (Which, after years of not using C/C++, I still find myself having to correct within Java programs.)

Neither of the research scientists are using JCL (Job Control Language; the high-level language that's only used on mainframes). The other option would be COBOL, which is very common in legacy code thanks to IBM's policy of maintaining backwards compatibility at all costs. That looks very much like formalized plaintext, though. The examples read like Fortran to me, which is common on supercomputers.

Edit: Corrected by siege, before I even posted. :)