|
Greetings from
the Pacific Northwest: I’ll bet
that more than a few of you can relate to this article, one way, or the other. To
the Liberal Arts, He Adds Computer Science @ http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/31/technology/circuits/31prof.html?8ict Excerpt: “After
a late-October class, Mr. Kernighan explained that his goal in the course was
to impart an intelligent
skepticism
about computer technology, an informed sense of its possibilities and
limitations. "And you can't
do that in the abstract," he said, which is why programming and projects
are essential elements in his course.
Smiling, he mentioned the often-quoted line from the science-fiction
writer Arthur C. Clarke: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is
indistinguishable from magic."
A wonderful phrase, Mr. Kernighan said, "but there is no magic. …Some computer scientists have pushed ever since to make
computing a central part of a liberal arts education. In 1999, a report by the National Research Council, an arm
of the National Academy of Sciences, titled "Being Fluent with Information
Technology" called for a broader definition of computer education that
would emphasize not just practical skills but also concepts,
principles and ideas. That is,
precisely the sort of course Mr. Kernighan is teaching at Princeton. “ Karen Watters
Cole East of
Portland, West of Mt Hood Outgoing Mail Scanned by NAV 2002 |
