[joehillen]

This is a common misconception. Haskell is extremely readable. You just have to learn it.

Python reads like pseudo-code where as Haskell reads like math. Both are readable, they are just different.

I suspect it's easier to teach someone Haskell if they have never done imperative programming before because they have a lot less hang ups.

[sea6ear]

I think this is a fairly insightful analysis. Haskell seems to be semantically very dense - each symbol or function packs a lot of meaning.

Reading Haskell for me is like when I had to do math proofs in Real Analysis or Abstract Algebra - it takes a fair amount of time to get into the mode where I can understand what is written very concisely in front of me.

To me it seems that Haskell suffers from some of the same problem that mathematics does - it is very concise notation for someone already familiar with the concepts, and a lot faster to write if you are familiar, but reading requires unpacking all the meaning of the notation, so ultimately is far more time consuming unless you are already familiar with the concepts that are in the code.

[skywhopper]

The "joke" was that Haskell looks very different from most popular programming languages, and that folks who think it "looks cooler than Python" are likely reacting to its indecipherability combined with the fact that it's clearly doing something interesting.

At least Python programmers have a sense of humor.