# Boy, Am I Stupid!



## bookslover (Jan 12, 2009)

My son-in-law is in college studing to be a computer programmer. He's taking pre-calculus. Then, he's got 3 courses of Calculus to take. After that, he's got Trigonometry, and a bunch of other math stuff after that.

I always thought computer code was just a bunch of zeros and ones...


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## PresbyDane (Jan 12, 2009)

Yeah that would be quite stupid to believe that


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## Herald (Jan 12, 2009)

Richard, just because you got by life with an abacus doesn't mean the rest of us are in the stone age.


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## turmeric (Jan 12, 2009)

Hey, I want one! Are they pretty cheap?


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## bookslover (Jan 12, 2009)

Herald said:


> Richard, just because you got by life with an abacus doesn't mean the rest of us are in the stone age.



2+3 is still 9.........right?


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## gene_mingo (Jan 12, 2009)

bookslover said:


> Herald said:
> 
> 
> > Richard, just because you got by life with an abacus doesn't mean the rest of us are in the stone age.
> ...




Sometimes...


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## lynnie (Jan 12, 2009)

My son went to college for two years intending to be a math major. When he got to multiple dimensions he decided it wasn't what he wanted to do with his life.

He did one year of part time computer tech ( networking and security) and interviewed for a local firm. They asked him exactly ONE question about his $17,500 computer training, and then the co owner grilled him about his math background, saying math aptitude was the best indicator for success.

Anyway, he ended up getting trained and turned out to be so good at it they hired him after six months for forty thousand with full benefits. My dropout  My kid with the degree ( history) is having the worst time in this economy and going back for a MA. Seems so unfair.

Anyway, tell him to work at the math. The guys doing the hiring want to see that math aptitude as much as the programming knowledge.


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## Mark Hettler (Jan 12, 2009)

As I said in my post in the "Introduce Yourself" area (http://www.puritanboard.com/f20/hello-nj-42251/#post524517):



> I am a graduate of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia (M.Div. 1977), working as a Senior Software Analyst at a software development firm in Cherry Hill, NJ. I tell co-workers and former classmates that Westminster is what prepared me for a career in computer software, because it taught me to think analytically. No one does if-then-else logic like the Apostle Paul, and no one brings out the if-then-else logic of the Apostle Paul like Richard Gaffin.



If he's going to be a programmer, the best thing he can do is study at Westminster.


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## Hamalas (Jan 12, 2009)

> I always thought computer code was just a bunch of zeros and ones...


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## bookslover (Jan 12, 2009)

Mark Hettler said:


> As I said in my post in the "Introduce Yourself" area (http://www.puritanboard.com/f20/hello-nj-42251/#post524517):
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I see what you mean. Unfortunately (unprovidentially?), he's not a Christian.


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## Marrow Man (Jan 12, 2009)

Tell him to avoid all math courses with "theory" in the title if he can: set theory, number theory, etc. Those are the ones that separate the math men from the boys!


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## jfschultz (Jan 13, 2009)

From my experience, having been in this business for over 30 years, this higher math might look good on a resume. But, the math needed is tied to the type of system you are dealing with.

If you are at Boeing dealing with fluid dynamics for the next generation of aircraft, you do need calculus++. But for accounting applications, you need a good grounding in accounting and calculus takes a back seat.

I agree with Mark, the most important discipline is good logical thinking.


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## Rocketeer (Jan 13, 2009)

bookslover said:


> 2+3 is still 9.........right?



If you are a relativist, that is simultaneously both true and not true, for you, at least. If you're not... out of luck.


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## toddpedlar (Jan 13, 2009)

jfschultz said:


> From my experience, having been in this business for over 30 years, this higher math might look good on a resume. But, the math needed is tied to the type of system you are dealing with.
> 
> If you are at Boeing dealing with fluid dynamics for the next generation of aircraft, you do need calculus++. But for accounting applications, you need a good grounding in accounting and calculus takes a back seat.
> 
> I agree with Mark, the most important discipline is good logical thinking.



Which is precisely what good mathematical training will give him the opportunity to develop.

If he's in school to be educated in computer science, then he should be as well rounded as he can be. (note computer science is FAR different than "computer operator training" or "data entry and database training"). If he's in school to get a particular job in a particular subfield, then he should be going to a school that will give him that. Since we have little idea where we'll be ending up when we start as undergraduates, the well-rounded route is far more effective and (imnsho) a better example of good stewardship.


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## TsonMariytho (Jan 29, 2009)

gene_mingo said:


> bookslover said:
> 
> 
> > Herald said:
> ...



That's the beautiful thing about a computer. Even if you switch to totally different computer hardware, as long as you stay in the same programming language, you can depend on the fact that 9 equals 011.

(Though you can't have 2 + 3 equal 9, sorry.)


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## VictorBravo (Jan 29, 2009)

The only thing confusing to me about the original post is that he is taking trigonometry after Calculus. Unless you misunderstood him and he was talking about Calculus of trigonomic functions. 

Regardless, the more math the better if he can handle it. As Todd said, it is great preparation for all sorts of careers. May God seize his mind and his heart while he is at it.


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## Theognome (Jan 29, 2009)

Although my last signature line disagrees, it is also said that there are 10 kinds of people- those who know binary, and those who don't.

Theognome


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## VictorBravo (Jan 29, 2009)

Theognome said:


> Although my last signature line disagrees, it is also said that there are 10 kinds of people- those who know binary, and those who don't.
> 
> Theognome


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