3 ms·

One Man’s View of Computer Science (1968) [pdf]

34 points by pncnmnp 6y ago

ableal 6y ago
1968 ACM Turing Lecture by R. W. Hamming (in case the PDF is not convenient)
dkural 6y ago
For anyone interested in this article I'd also highly recommend Richard Hamming's book The Art of Doing Science and Engineering | Learning to Learn
- MrXOR 6y ago
  Me too.
eternalban 6y ago
"While you will now and then find some aspect of nmthematics defined rather sharply the only texturally agreed upon definition of mathematics is "mathematics is what mathematicians do", which is followed by "mathematicians are people who do mathematics." What is true about defining mathematics is also true about many other fields: there is often no dear, sharp definitiou of the field." Here is my defintion: Computer Science is the field of inquiry and knowledge of 'Computation' and all means, methodologies, formalisms, and constructs that enable 'Computation'. [edit: And to anchor this in the broader context of human inquiry, we have the categorical triumvirate of Empirical, Deductive, and Computational inquiry.]
- ThePadawan 6y ago
  Hm, that definition accidentally includes Electrical Engineering, doesn't it?
  - eternalban 6y ago
    The above is concerned with sciences, not engineering. Applied science (engineering) is imo applicable and of use to all of the 3 categories: The notion of 'measurement' is fundamental to empirical inquiry and EEs have gifted us with many high fidelity devices that measure things. Does that mean Empiricism "includes Electrical Engineering"? EE's can also give computer scientists with machines to compute. The EE part is the mechanism. Why you even create the device, and what it does, is CS. Deductive sciences also use the same computational machines to automate proofs. An anthropomorphic family homily of science would go something like this: Father Rationality and Mother Mathematics had 3 children called Empirical, Deductive, and Computational. They shared many toys.
  - fuzzfactor 6y ago
    Electronics has always contained computer science to an extent for me. Even though when I started it was still mechanical computation, I could do some good science anyway, and I had many years of anticipation before having adequate computational electronics of my own. Years more until the programmable electronics that was so promising. Still basically just want to get the most out of the circuit whether it's analog or digital, sometimes you program sometimes you don't.
llimllib 6y ago
I reformatted this into a reasonably readable online version: https://gist.io/@llimllib/58812e1ee1d7fa5196b2afc46a566ff6 https://gist.io/@llimllib/58812e1ee1d7fa5196b2afc46a566ff6

34 points by pncnmnp 6y ago

1968 ACM Turing Lecture by R. W. Hamming (in case the PDF is not convenient)

For anyone interested in this article I'd also highly recommend Richard Hamming's book The Art of Doing Science and Engineering | Learning to Learn

MrXOR 6y ago
Me too.

eternalban 6y ago

"While you will now and then find some aspect of nmthematics defined rather sharply the only texturally agreed upon definition of mathematics is "mathematics is what mathematicians do", which is followed by "mathematicians are people who do mathematics." What is true about defining mathematics is also true about many other fields: there is often no dear, sharp definitiou of the field." Here is my defintion: Computer Science is the field of inquiry and knowledge of 'Computation' and all means, methodologies, formalisms, and constructs that enable 'Computation'. [edit: And to anchor this in the broader context of human inquiry, we have the categorical triumvirate of Empirical, Deductive, and Computational inquiry.]

ThePadawan 6y ago
Hm, that definition accidentally includes Electrical Engineering, doesn't it?
- eternalban 6y ago
  The above is concerned with sciences, not engineering. Applied science (engineering) is imo applicable and of use to all of the 3 categories: The notion of 'measurement' is fundamental to empirical inquiry and EEs have gifted us with many high fidelity devices that measure things. Does that mean Empiricism "includes Electrical Engineering"? EE's can also give computer scientists with machines to compute. The EE part is the mechanism. Why you even create the device, and what it does, is CS. Deductive sciences also use the same computational machines to automate proofs. An anthropomorphic family homily of science would go something like this: Father Rationality and Mother Mathematics had 3 children called Empirical, Deductive, and Computational. They shared many toys.
- fuzzfactor 6y ago
  Electronics has always contained computer science to an extent for me. Even though when I started it was still mechanical computation, I could do some good science anyway, and I had many years of anticipation before having adequate computational electronics of my own. Years more until the programmable electronics that was so promising. Still basically just want to get the most out of the circuit whether it's analog or digital, sometimes you program sometimes you don't.

llimllib 6y ago

I reformatted this into a reasonably readable online version: https://gist.io/@llimllib/58812e1ee1d7fa5196b2afc46a566ff6 https://gist.io/@llimllib/58812e1ee1d7fa5196b2afc46a566ff6