Why CS?

“Why Computer Science? and specifically, why UofT?”

That was the thousand-pound gorilla in BA 4290 as a handful of DCS Ambassadors met together for the first of  two training sessions.  As DCS Ambassadors, we have the option of representing UofT on high school visits to promote our computer science program.  So in order to help us prepare, Diane Horton arranged for a series of training sessions to help us with our presentations.  But before I could even begin to think of an answer, I became distracted by another bombshell: “Why are you the best person to tell them about Computer Science at UofT?”

If they were looking for the typical computer science nerd, then they would’ve chosen the wrong man for the job. I’m definitely not the smartest person in CS.  I’m no wizard at proofs and theory, and I’m no star programmer.  In fact, you could say that I’m the embodiment of mediocrity in CS.  Computer theory is neat and all, but my head will start spinning if you ask me to prove anything.  As for programming, I’d rank myself as a pretty good programmer;  hell, I consider myself to be better than most, but I’m definitely not the best that’s out there.

Fortunately for me, I think they’re looking for something quite different in their ambassadors.

So why me?  why CS? and  why UofT? Blimey, that’s a lot of why’s!  But before I even try to answer these questions, lets take a few steps back, back to March 10th in the year 2000.

On March 10, 2000, the NASDAQ exchange peaked at whopping 5132.52 points; the peak of the infamous Dot-Com bubble.  At that time, everybody wanted a piece of the I.T. boom; teenagers were made into millionaires overnight, employees were treated like rock stars and stock options and bonuses were handed out like candy on Halloween.  The question of “why computer science?” simply never came  up: it was a no-brainer! Everyone from their 10 year old brother to their 80 year old grandmother was out making their own website.  I mean, everyone wanted their site to be the next Yahoo or AltaVista. It wasn’t very long before everyone’s rosy dream of digital success came crashing down like a house of cards.  Reality finally caught up with the dreamers and the bubble simply burst. Careers were ruined, jobs were lost, and the economy suffered.  All of a sudden, computer science seemed like a very bad career choice.

Today, almost a full decade after the Dot-Com bust, that attitude of fear and uneasiness towards the computer science discipline is still very much alive. I mean, there are more myths about our field than I would care to list, so here’s a quick test: when you think of a computer science geek, who do you think of, this dude, or this dude .

I bet most of you picked the first guy; I mean, all of the tell-tale signs are there: the greasy face, the long hair curly hair and the savage beard.  Well, you were right; that was Richard Stallman, the author of the GNU license the founder of the Free Software Foundation, a computer science god in his own right.  And the second guy?  Oh he’s Linus Torvalds, the guy who decided to re-write UNIX in his spare time and as a result, created a little OS called Linux.  So the test was a bit of a trick, they’re both uber-geeks!

The really sad thing is that most people don’t realize that the field of computer science has grown and matured way beyond the realm of the basement coder or the weekend Dungeons & Dragon master.  And no, it is not because all the jobs have been shipped off to India.

Sure, computer science involves a lot of scary coding, but that’s not the only thing we do in cs.  Code and programs are merely the tools that enable us do our work, to help others solve problems.  And we aren’t just talking about hand-wavy theoretical problems. Sure there’s a time and a place for that stuff, but when you do work in computer science, you create tools that genuinely help people solve everyday problems.  I mean, name a field where you can work and collaborate with experts from every profession: biologists, physicists, bankers, doctors, teachers, aid workers, etc. You’ll be hard pressed to name some, but computer science would definitely be one of them.  Professionals from all walks of life have problems that they need to solve: biologists need ways to analyze DNA, doctors need a better way to manage their patients, and bankers need to analyze stocks.  Computer scientists are the experts who can work with these people to help them find solutions for their problems.

But why is UofT a good place to learn about computer science?  I mean, Waterloo is probably 10x geekier than us, so why not go there?  Well, at UofT, the computer science program is actually a part of the Arts&Science department.  So if you’re like me and you have an inkling of an interest in other fields outside of engineering or math, you’ll be free to enroll in other courses like philosophy or political science.  I mean, UofT has something like 300+ courses in their Arts&Science department, so you’re bound to find something that you’re interested in.  And not to stroke the ego of any of my professors, but there are some really great professors out here at UofT.  On top of being experts in their field of specialty, they’re also very friendly and personal (yes, they DO know the names of their students!).  Hell, you can even learn about Cook’s Theorm from Stephen Cook himself!

And finally, why me?  Personally, I don’t think I have a good answer to that question yet.  I’m no genius, but I have a passion for my field.  I know that there have been times when I have questioned my decision of going into computer science; but looking back on things now, I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else.  Its hard work, but its rewarding and most importantly, its unbelievably fun and rewarding.  So in the next few weeks when I go out to visit these high school kids, I’m going to do my best to promote computer science as what it really is: a field that is challenging, engaging, and fun.