[Discuss] OT: Do CS grads need calculus?

[gaf at blu.org (Jerry Feldman)]

There was a comment in the old Unix source code, "You are not expected
to understand this". But, the knowledge and understanding of algorithms
and data structures are necessary for people working in kernel space.
Much depends on the type of programming. I once worked on a contract at
a bank where 2 of us were working on a C program and were surrounded by
COBOL programmers. I heard one guy say that the bubble sort is the best
sort. Henry and I nearly could not contain ourselves. I once had a case
in COBOL program that used to take hours to run. At 2AM, I changed 1
line of code and the program ran in under an hour. While this was not
related to calculus, it is understanding the what the system is doing.
If you are writing or maintaining a file system, such as ext4 or btrfs,
you certainly need a good understanding of the mathematics as well as
the underlying environment.

On 04/07/2015 07:42 PM, Edward Ned Harvey (blu) wrote:
> John says "I have to say that I have never in a successful 40-year programming career ever needed to know calculus."
>
> To which I respond:  I have never, in my career, needed my degree.  But I'm glad to have it.
>
> And do CS grads need Acting I, or Music Theory I?  Those were the free electives that I chose.  Why not abolish free electives if we are only concerned about what's strictly directly applicable to a career?  I am personally in favor of all these classes - and I've got to say - to my surprise, Acting I was the most rewarding class I ever took, contributing more than any other to my personal success and wellbeing.

-- 
Jerry Feldman <gaf at blu.org>
Boston Linux and Unix
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