Computer Science Department Blog

Recently a high school student told me he was advised to major in mechanical engineering rather than computer science because “computers are just a tool; you need to learn to do something with that tool.” Interesting thought. Deserves a response. Maybe this is one of the reasons so few people are studying computer science, despite its intrinsic fascination and despite outstanding career prospects. Maybe people are so accustomed to computers that they take them for granted and don’t view them as objects of intellectual interest or world-changing potential any more. Maybe computers are now no more interesting than roads or motors or batteries—things that just work and you use them to do something more interesting. Oh wait. You mean there’s still interesting and important work to do on roads and motors and batteries? So isn’t it at least plausible that there is interesting and important work still to be done with computers?

I’ll grant that a computer is “just a tool” in some sense. But the programmability of this tool makes a profound difference. By the way, this is why software is especially interesting and important, in my (biased) view.

Recently the National Academy of Engineering published a list of 14 grand challenges for engineering in the 21st century. Very exciting, motivating and important stuff! If you are at all interested in being an engineer, please look at this list. And notice that advances in computer science will be critical in every single area.

Every week it seems like a hear of a cool new way in which someone’s life is made better through the creative use of computing. From this article in the Christian Science Monitor, entitled “Internet Helps Americans Save More Energy Every Year,” comes this little tidbit:

“… delivery giant UPS introduced new software to develop more efficient routes and help drivers avoid left-hand turns. Result: 28.5 million fewer miles driven and 3 million gallons of gas saved each year.”

Nice story. And simple enough to explain to your mother!

Computer scientists are doing a lot of self-analysis these days. “Why are so few students interested in studying CS?” “What are the big questions CS should be answering?” “How can we better explain what we do?” Lots of discussion, hopefully with some good results for our field and for the world (see www.imageofcomputing.com for a recent contribution to the discussion — there is plenty of useful propaganda there if you are considering CS as a major or a profession).

In fact, computer scientists have done relatively little of this kind of thinking during the short history of the field. I don’t remember worrying too much about the image of computing when I got into this business 20-some years ago. There were too many interesting things to learn and do to have time to worry about image. In some sense the field has been too young to ask and answer these kinds of questions. We’re still establishing our place in the world of science and engineering. And most of the people in the field have themselves been relatively young, busy establishing careers and moving at internet pace to create, innovate, solve problems, and build cool things. So it’s pretty interesting to watch now that we have both the people and the motivation to step back and address these big high-level questions.