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What? You have to be kidding me. TCS involves some of the 'deepest' mathematics known to mankind. Try convinvcing an expert that complexity theory and cryptogra

What? You have to be kidding me. TCS involves some of the 'deepest' mathematics known to mankind. Try convinvcing an expert that complexity theory and cryptography and type theory and PL theory aren't thoroughly mathematical. In fact computatbility theory and type theory lie at the very foundations of a reformulation of the basis mathematics in Homotopy Type Theory. In fact, unlike physics and chemistry, which simply utilize deep mathematics, CS is deep mathematics.

eli_gottlieb 12y ago
>What? You have to be kidding me. TCS involves some of the 'deepest' mathematics known to mankind. Try convinvcing an expert that complexity theory and cryptography and type theory and PL theory aren't thoroughly mathematical. In fact computatbility theory and type theory lie at the very foundations of a reformulation of the basis mathematics in Homotopy Type Theory. Once upon a time I had a research mentor who kept the following limerick on his academic jokes page. I find it applicable here to explain why people think Theoretical CS isn't mathematical: No idea is too obvious or dreary, If appropriately expressed in type theory. It's a research advance, no-one understands, But they are too impressed to be leery. Or in other words, actual theoretical CS, which does employ deep mathematics, is a tiny field compared to most of what people consider "Computing Science" to be.
- Ar-Curunir 12y ago
  First we need to define what computing science is. Computer Science is not software engineering. I agree that there is not much mathematics in software engg, but there is a significant amount of pioneering mathematics in say signals or cryptography or complexity theory. Moreover, even in the systems side of CS, there is a lot of math involved in say distributed systems or networks. Computer Science is a field FOUNDED on the deepest parts of mathematics, so I find any claim that CS is not a fundamentally mathematical discipline a joke.
- baddox 12y ago
  That's largely why I said "theoretical computer science."
swatow 12y ago
I already made an explicit exception for dependent type theory: >Yes, in some cases deep math is applicable to CS, e.g. dependent type theory Homotopy type theory is an extension/variation of dependent type theory.

eli_gottlieb 12y ago

>What? You have to be kidding me. TCS involves some of the 'deepest' mathematics known to mankind. Try convinvcing an expert that complexity theory and cryptography and type theory and PL theory aren't thoroughly mathematical. In fact computatbility theory and type theory lie at the very foundations of a reformulation of the basis mathematics in Homotopy Type Theory. Once upon a time I had a research mentor who kept the following limerick on his academic jokes page. I find it applicable here to explain why people think Theoretical CS isn't mathematical: No idea is too obvious or dreary, If appropriately expressed in type theory. It's a research advance, no-one understands, But they are too impressed to be leery. Or in other words, actual theoretical CS, which does employ deep mathematics, is a tiny field compared to most of what people consider "Computing Science" to be.

Ar-Curunir 12y ago
First we need to define what computing science is. Computer Science is not software engineering. I agree that there is not much mathematics in software engg, but there is a significant amount of pioneering mathematics in say signals or cryptography or complexity theory. Moreover, even in the systems side of CS, there is a lot of math involved in say distributed systems or networks. Computer Science is a field FOUNDED on the deepest parts of mathematics, so I find any claim that CS is not a fundamentally mathematical discipline a joke.
baddox 12y ago
That's largely why I said "theoretical computer science."

swatow 12y ago

I already made an explicit exception for dependent type theory: >Yes, in some cases deep math is applicable to CS, e.g. dependent type theory Homotopy type theory is an extension/variation of dependent type theory.