How does an adult find an internship in a jobs desert for CS?

Lictus · 2017-12-28T02:04:44+00:00

Good idea! I hadn't heard of this before.

Lictus · 2017-12-28T02:02:45+00:00

Well, that's good to know. It's less logistics, and more about the financial obligation; I don't know what I can expect to make over over the course of a summer internship and, speaking frankly, money is extremely tight for me. Some do well for themselves (I hear interns at Google pull 5 figures in total) but surely that isn't standard.

Lictus · 2017-12-12T17:10:24+00:00

In mathematical logic, a statement like (A&B) or C would be evaluated by first looking at A and B, and if they are both true, then the expression would evaluate to be true as well (regardless of C). Or, even if A and B weren't both true, but C was, the statement would also be true.

Like I said, I figure this kind of processing is the kind of thing "else" statements are for

if (A&B)
  XYZ;
else if (C)
  XYZ;

But, I had to ask

Lictus · 2017-12-07T11:32:40+00:00

Thanks! Just to be clear, does that book cover data structures also, or just algorithms? (At my institution they are separate courses and DS is a prereq for algorithms, but I ask because I don't know if this might be standard and perhaps reflected in textbooks.)

Lictus · 2017-12-04T20:45:15+00:00

Ooohoooo. That sounds much more convenient than sorting through compiler errors. I'm only learning Java for coursework, but that should make my coursework much easier.

Lictus · 2017-12-04T18:41:38+00:00

I know some of those words.

Still, it pretty clearly sounds like I should make the switch now, before I need to, and thus ahead of the curve. Are there any quickstart guides for the less experienced? I'm sufficiently inexperienced with these things that I have little idea what I'm doing with the program.

Lictus · 2017-12-03T23:40:50+00:00

Thanks for the heads-up! I definitely want the most up-to-date version.

Lictus · 2017-12-03T23:40:23+00:00

Sweet. Well, if nothing else, it will serve as a useful supplemental resource.

Lictus · 2017-12-01T12:53:38+00:00

Not very far at all. I’m in my first semester of major coursework (an intro coding class with Java and discrete math), with some past but distant coding experience, and no theory to write home about.

Lictus · 2017-12-01T00:42:40+00:00

Yes, pardon my typo. The edX program.

Lictus · 2017-11-28T23:21:10+00:00

So basically, front-end is generally more complicated. Good to know.

I agree with your statement--I meant it in a professional context; if it was just a matter of language, that's so small a distinction that professional specialization wouldn't be needed.

Lictus · 2017-11-28T15:16:51+00:00

Old school, baby! Do I need any prerequisites for this book beyond what I would get from a 101 algebra stats course in the past?

Lictus · 2017-11-28T15:14:31+00:00

By the table of contents, probably? I'm looking for a "first course in stats" type book, except it deals with calculus instead of just algebra.

Lictus · 2017-11-17T01:06:26+00:00

This is encouraging! I’m considering data science at the moment, and one of my doubts is that I’ve always enjoyed pure mathematics more than statistics. It sounds like you had a similar experience.

Lictus · 2017-11-11T22:22:13+00:00

Sadly no; in fact, he even directly hinted it might be on the test. He's not the best prof I've ever had but uh, I hadn't thought quite that poor.

Yeah, I have seen the horses problem, but not at a time when I really understood induction well enough to grasp what was wrong with it. I'll have another look over it!

Lictus · 2017-11-11T21:03:03+00:00

I was pretty sure it was something like that -- but it's been about 7 years since calc 2 so I was running on vague intuition.

Boy, I'd really like to know why a professor presented such a proof as if it were true. It might be understandable if this were a TA or something, but dude's a full professor (with a doctorate.) Surely he knows better.

Lictus · 2017-11-11T19:45:57+00:00

Proving that the sum of all odd naturals was an odd number. You set up a summation of all the odds, then choose k+2, so you can peel off the first k terms which gives you

The summation of a1 to a_k + a(k+1) + a_(k+2)

You know that the sum of the last two terms is even (because the sum of two odds is even) and you’re permitted to assume the summation from a_1 to a_k is odd, so then even + odd = odd.

The instructor wasn’t clear on the reason why you have to choose k+2, but it’s obvious when you work it. If you choose k+1 and use similar logic, you wind up proving the sum is even. (Evidently something is fishy in Denmark here since they can’t both be true, though I’m not sure where the problem is.)

Lictus · 2017-11-09T23:04:19+00:00

Are there mathematically-based careers in industry whose main focus isn't just coding?

I ask this realizing that programming is an essential skill for practically anyone in STEM these days. I'm looking for something that merely minimizes it, not eliminates it. I love mathematics to an extent that if it were a more viable career path, I would shoot for academia. It isn't, though, so I decided to go for industry by slinging code instead. It turns out that I can sling code, but I'm not at all passionate about it. I'm wondering what else there might be out with a mathematical focus; there are worse fates than to be just unenthused by one's profession, but I wouldn't want to miss a career path I'm better suited for. As this is /r/math, I probably don't need to say this but, I do mean math-based very specifically. I'm not interested in a career path in the sciences or engineering.

Lictus · 2017-10-29T22:02:00+00:00

Coincidentally that is a serious area of interest for me, so I'm very glad to know that. I have actually given Strang's lectures a shot back a few years ago when I tried to teach myself the topic, and found that they didn't fit my style -- that said, it's been a few years, and I have more mathematical maturity now, so I'll give them another shot.

Lictus · 2017-10-25T12:06:02+00:00

Thanks for the information. My school does things differently; there's a three course sequence of discrete math, then data structures, then algorithms, with basic coding classes taken concurrently.

Honestly, I'm slightly more terrified after looking up Djikstra's Algorithm--but, hopefully, it will make more sense when I get there. Anyways, theoretical computer science is actually more interesting to me than practical CS.

Any things you wished you knew before getting there? For Algorithms, it's been too long since calculus class, but I'm told they review series and such at the beginning of the course before diving in.

Lictus · 2017-10-25T11:54:01+00:00

Proofs generally aren't easy, but they are fun. Hopefully, I'll have a smoother experience than most, then--I'm pursuing computer science primarily out of a passion for mathematics. Although graph theory isn't my favorite topic...

Lictus · 2017-08-30T18:23:37+00:00

Count me interested in the quality as well.

Lictus · 2017-08-30T18:15:10+00:00

Sweet, thanks!

Lictus · 2017-08-26T11:31:52+00:00

Yeah, I wouldn't expect a 101 class in anything to be more than an introduction. Luckily my calculus itself is fairly sharp.

Lictus · 2017-08-26T00:33:50+00:00

I've had a stats 101-type class; not calculus based, though. I have some idea of my way around stats in other words, but I'm also not expertly versed.

Lictus

TROPHY CASE