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> […] a lot of top schools don't even really teach programming in their computer science programs. It's something you just pick up on your own. "Computer scien

> […] a lot of top schools don't even really teach programming in their computer science programs. It's something you just pick up on your own. "Computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes, biology is about microscopes or chemistry is about beakers and test tubes. Science is not about tools. It is about how we use them, and what we find out when we do." * https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/04/02/computer-science/ https://quoteinvestigator.com/2021/04/02/computer-science/ * https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Computer_science#Disputed https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Computer_science#Disputed Perhaps a trade school would be better if someone wants to focus on 'just' programming.

ghaff 1y ago
Totally. One consequence which I'm somewhat ambivalent about is that people with interest in engineering fields other than computer science may not be expected to have the degree of familiarity with the tools of the trade that budding computer scientists do. But, given the popularity of computer science as a major, it's probably inevitable to expect that freshmen at least in top schools have done at least some programming.
dingnuts 1y ago
Being able to understand computer science and apply it is called software ENGINEERING for a reason, and it's a lot more complicated than 'just programming'. You sound like a physicist who thinks mechanical engineers are unnecessary because we have physicists and car mechanics.
- throw0101b 1y ago
  > You sound like a physicist who thinks mechanical engineers are unnecessary because we have physicists and car mechanics. Or I sound like someone who recognizes that physics and computer science, and mechanical engineering and computer engineering / programming, are different areas of activity.
Izkata 1y ago
I think completely separating it like that goes too far in the other direction. The absolute best undergrad classes I had were the two where the lectures were entirely on the theory side, then the projects were practical implementations of the theory.

ghaff 1y ago

Totally. One consequence which I'm somewhat ambivalent about is that people with interest in engineering fields other than computer science may not be expected to have the degree of familiarity with the tools of the trade that budding computer scientists do. But, given the popularity of computer science as a major, it's probably inevitable to expect that freshmen at least in top schools have done at least some programming.

dingnuts 1y ago

Being able to understand computer science and apply it is called software ENGINEERING for a reason, and it's a lot more complicated than 'just programming'. You sound like a physicist who thinks mechanical engineers are unnecessary because we have physicists and car mechanics.

throw0101b 1y ago
> You sound like a physicist who thinks mechanical engineers are unnecessary because we have physicists and car mechanics. Or I sound like someone who recognizes that physics and computer science, and mechanical engineering and computer engineering / programming, are different areas of activity.

Izkata 1y ago

I think completely separating it like that goes too far in the other direction. The absolute best undergrad classes I had were the two where the lectures were entirely on the theory side, then the projects were practical implementations of the theory.