>> > A carpenter uses his tools -- screwdriver, saw, planer --to do >> > carpentry >> > A programmer uses his tools to to programming -- one of which is >> > called 'programming language' >> >> > Doing programming without programming languages is like using toenails >> > to tighten screws >> >> I would argue that the computer is the tool, not the language. > > "Computer science is as much about computers as astronomy is about > telescopes" -- E W Dijkstra > > Here are some other attempted corrections of the misnomer "computer > science": > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_science#Name_of_the_field
I view "computer science" as applied mathematics, when it deserves that moniker. When it doesn't, it is merely engineering. Ironically, telescopes are a tool that astronomers use to view the stars. On Tue, Apr 3, 2012 at 1:25 PM, rusi <rustompm...@gmail.com> wrote: > All this futuristic grandiloquence: > > On Apr 3, 10:17 pm, Nathan Rice <nathan.alexander.r...@gmail.com> > wrote: >> The crux of my view is that programming languages exist in part >> because computers in general are not smart enough to converse with >> humans on their own level, so we have to talk to them like autistic 5 >> year-olds. That was fine when we didn't have any other options, but >> all the pieces exist now to let computers talk to us very close to our >> own level, and represent information at the same way we do. Projects >> like IBM's Watson, Siri, Wolfram Alpha and Cyc demonstrate pretty >> clearly to me that we are capable of taking the next step, and the >> resurgence of the technology sector along with the shortage of >> qualified developers indicates to me that we need to move now. > > needs to be juxtaposed with this antiquated view > >> I would argue that the computer is the tool, not the language. > > > ... a view that could not be held by an educated person after the > 1960s -- ie when it became amply clear to all that the essential and > hard issues in CS are about software and not hardware I'll go ahead and forgive the club handed fallacies, so we can have a nice discussion of your primary point. What a civil troll I am :) Lets start with some analogies. In cooking, chefs use recipes to produce a meal; the recipe is not a tool. In architecture, a builder uses a blueprint to produce a building; the blueprint is not a tool. In manufacturing, expensive machines use plans to produce physical goods; the plans are not the tool. You could say the compiler is a tool, or a development environment is a tool. The programming language is a mechanism for communication. -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
