The introduction to the Revised(5) Report on the Algorithmic Language Scheme begins:
Programming languages should be designed not by piling feature on top of feature, but by removing the weaknesses and restrictions that make additional features appear necessary. Scheme demonstrates that a very small number of rules for forming expressions, with no restrictions on how they are composed, suffice to form a practical and efficient programming language that is flexible enough to support most of the major programming paradigms in use today.
This same process has been applied to Scheme to make it into Better Scheme. Scheme introduced first class procedures as in the lambda calculus and other important advances in consistency and power. Better Scheme adds currying, makes hygenic macros first class and everything is a function as in the lambda calculus.
I would like to thank all those who have worked to create first LISP then Scheme and the following people for their help: Lincoln Ritter, Stephen Wong, Jules Milner-Brage, and Peter Lyons. Thanks also to Oberlin College for the opportunity to work on this project due to the Winter Term program.