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TIL that, unlike C pointers, a Rust pointer is not just a memory address:

https://rust-lang.github.io/rfcs/3559-rust-has-provenance.html

TL;DR: Rust pointers also carry a "provenance", used by static analysis to determine which operations are safe.

This RFC does not say weather provenance metadata can also be tracked and checked at run-time in cases where static analysis would be too restrictive.

#rust #programming