Lazy evaluation is a strategy where expressions are only evaluated when their results are actually needed, allowing for potentially infinite data structures and improved performance. This evaluation model is commonly used in functional programming languages like Haskell, as well as in LINQ, a popular querying language for .NET developers.

How to use it in a sentence

• "I wish the PM would use lazy evaluation instead of bothering me with feature requests every day," grumbled the senior engineer as she refactored her code to avoid unnecessary computations.

• The developer couldn't help but chuckle when the intern enthusiastically suggested using lazy evaluation to optimize their jQuery spaghetti code, as if that would magically fix the performance issues caused by their bloated React components.

If you actually want to learn more...

• Lazy Evaluation - Computerphile: This YouTube video provides a beginner-friendly introduction to lazy evaluation, explaining the concept with simple examples and discussing its advantages.

• Lazy Evaluation in JavaScript: This article dives into how lazy evaluation can be implemented in JavaScript, a language that doesn't natively support it, and demonstrates its potential benefits in terms of performance and modularity.

• The Subtle Perils of Lazy Evaluation: For a more advanced perspective, this conference talk explores some of the pitfalls and debugging challenges that can arise when using lazy evaluation in complex systems, drawing on real-world examples from Haskell and Scala.

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