Programs must be written to be read

Our design of this introductory computer-science subject reflects two major concerns. First, we want to establish the idea that a computer language is not just a way of getting a computer to perform operations but rather that it is a novel formal medium for expressing ideas about methodology. Thus, programs must be written for people to read, and only incidentally for machines to execute. [emphasis is mine]

-- H. Abelson and G. Sussman,
   Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs,
   MIT Press 1985.