RE: using setq to create lists based on other lists...

[Drew Adams]

> > Lisp is typically not a Lisp learner's first language.
> 
> Emacs could (and is) used by first learners and ...
> the Introduction could be used as a Lisp manual for
> such people.

Yes, of course.

The point is that someone coming to Lisp from another
language, especially (and typically) from a language
where variables are essentially local & lexical, may
have a harder time "getting it" than someone learning
programming with Lisp as her first language.

Things like list structure (including, yes, sharing
structure), symbols (named objects with properties),
dynamic scope/binding, `setq' (which can act on both
global & local vars), and even REPL/interpretation
can seem quite odd if you come to Lisp with only C
or Java or ... eyes.

Years ago I would have added higher-order and
anonymous functions to the list.  Even more years
ago I would have added recursion to it.  Depending
on the languages you are used to, the list can vary.
But Lisp is not C or Java or Haskell or ...

FWIW, I came to Lisp (and to purely functional,
logic-programming, and OOP languages) from Fortran.
No recursion, no nothin' - nada.  Another planet.
But lots of variable-value/common-memory sharing.