“Computer science is not about computers”

Re:“Computer science is not about computers” by xwolfi on Sunday May 30, 2021 @07:35AM (#27332501)

Yeah I remember that I started reaching my first CS successes once I knew enough of the mathematics and properties of the hardware to "think like a machine" and was trying to explain some of my peers still struggling how to do a more step by step execution in their mind.

In hindsight it's clear that you dont tell a story when you program a computer or not the way I'd describe my day or teach my kids about a phenomenon. It feels more like unrolling a tape and executing a receipe in the most simple way you can after you built a mind model of the machine. You mimic an actor maybe, rather than imagine an event ?

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Re:“Computer science is not about computers” by Peritract on Sunday May 30, 2021 @09:07AM (#27332966)

I have a very different experience; when I code, it feels similar to mapping out a conversation or constructing a narrative, and this is how I teach it to my students.

I've met people who view it as mathematics or philosophy or a bunch of other things; in the end, I think there is a wide range of valid mental models for how computers function and therefore how to communicate with them.

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