why did we move from punch cards to programming languages? we moved away from punch cards because of the physical limitations they added. dropping a stack of cards meant redoing that whole card, and a single type required re-punching an entire card instead of just deleting a character on a screen. this caused a slow workflow, where programmers needed to wait for the punch cards operators to finish before continuing with programming. take a read here if you are interested in learning more what does that tell you about the purpose of programming languages?just like the cards, they are a bridge between the human thinking and machine implementation. They also help by hiding the nitty-gritty details of low-levels programming.

why do we need hundreds of programming languages? each language is designed to solve and address a certain type of problems. they all make differing compromises on speed, safety, and human readability. Also, some languages are so entrenched in old systems that replacing them is just not worth it, like COBOL in bank systems. this idea is summed up well in this article

drawbacks of a lang i use? c++, readability and low-level abstraction

where would you start if you were creating a new programming lang? I need to define and specify what problem i am solving. is it speed? readability? you can watch the following video by Computerphile if you are interested in learning more