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Ask Slashdot: How Important Is Advanced Math In a CS Degree?
AvailableNickname writes "I am currently pursuing a bachelor's in CompSci and I just spent three hours working on a few differential equations for homework. It is very frustrating because I just don't grok advanced math. I can sort of understand a little bit, but I really don't grok anything beyond long division. But I love computers, and am very good at them. However, nobody in the workforce is even going to glance at my direction without a BSc. And to punish me for going into a field originally developed by mathematicians I need to learn all this crap. If I had understood what I was doing, maybe I wouldn't mind so much. But the double frustration of not understanding it and not understanding why the heck I need to do it is too much. So, how important is it?"
I hated math in university, I still hate it now, but over a 25 year programming career math has turned out to be the single most surprisingly useful thing I learned in university. Calculus, statistics, trig, I have needed them all in my programming work. I wouldn't have the cool job I have now if I couldn't do the math.
While I understand your point, it also has weaknesses.
I worked with a guy who was a math guru - and he was an absolute sh** software engineer. Oh, he could program some - give him a very finite problem to solve and he could solve it very functionally; however, when it came to actual software *engineering* he was an total loss.
Normally we'd replace a guy like that, but like I said, he was great with numbers - so we gave him a sandbox to play in. He never ever, ever, checked in code into our system. He'd finish something and turn it over to another engineer who'd refactor it and check it in.
He was a hell of a nice guy too, but being smart has nothing to do with being a good software engineer (although it surely makes it easier.)
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I work in computing; a meter away is a mathematician.
He knows real math: group theory, complex analysis, Lie algebras, topology, and, yes, differential equations. To him, math isn't about numbers ... it's about rigor, elegance, and beauty.
No surprise that his code is rigorous, elegant, and beautiful. When he showed me how to use Cheetah to build templates in Python, he explained things with an clarity and parsimony. In his world, clumsy coding is as bad as a clunky math; a clear mathematical proof is as fascinating as a tightly written function.
This man is the go-to guy for the 100 person business. Soft spoken and never argumentative, his advice and opinions carry weight. I'm honored to work alongside him; not a week goes by that I don't learn from him.