Angle Bracket

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Angle Bracket

Angle brackets () are used in programming languages to denote generic types or parameters, allowing for data types to be specified at a later stage. In web development, angle brackets enclose HTML elements and define their structure and content.

What does Angle Bracket mean?

Angle brackets, also known as less-than and greater-than signs (< and >), are special symbols used in various programming languages, mathematical expressions, and markup languages. They are primarily employed to enclose or delimit specific portions of text or code.

In programming, angle brackets are commonly used to define generic types and to specify template arguments. For instance, in the C++ language, the Syntax <int> represents a generic list that can contain Integer values. Angle brackets are also used in XML (Extensible Markup Language) to encapsulate tags that define the structure of a document.

Within mathematical expressions, angle brackets serve several purposes. They can denote the range of values for a variable, the direction of a vector, or the angle between two lines. For example, the notation “<x < 5” indicates that the variable x is less than 5. Angle brackets are also employed in Set theory to represent the notion of a “subset.”

Applications

Angle brackets have a wide range of applications in technology today, including:

  • Programming Languages: In object-oriented programming, angle brackets are used to define class templates and generic functions. This allows for the creation of reusable code that can work with different data types.

  • Markup Languages: In markup languages like HTML and XML, angle brackets are used to enclose tags that define the structure and content of a document. This enables the creation of web pages, documents, and other Structured Data formats.

  • Database Queries: In SQL (Structured Query Language), angle brackets are used to define subqueries and to specify the conditions for selecting data from a database.

  • Mathematical Expressions: Angle brackets are extensively used in mathematical expressions to denote set membership, intervals, and other mathematical concepts.

History

The origins of angle brackets can be traced back to the early days of computer programming, specifically to the LISP programming language developed in the 1950s. In LISP, angle brackets were used to enclose code blocks and to represent lists of data.

Over time, angle brackets were adopted by other programming languages, including FORTRAN, Pascal, and C++. They also became an integral part of markup languages, starting with SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language) in the 1980s.

Today, angle brackets are ubiquitous in the world of technology, serving as essential symbols for defining code structures, representing mathematical concepts, and structuring data in various formats. Their versatility and widespread adoption have made them an indispensable part of the technological landscape.