Andrew Walker
Computer science majors are burdened with
many heavy stereotypes. Although many of them are false, there is one that
appears to be true and plaguing the computing community. The ability to find a
soul mate is becoming extremely difficult for anyone interested in science of
technology. Computer science students remain single because of the concepts and
ideas taught to them throughout their studies. The mentality held by the
faculty, general computing concepts, programming tactics and coding
fundamentals all bring about the end of the student’s chance to date.
One of the main problems with the average
computer science major’s social life is the lack of time to go out and have
fun. It might be assumed that they are spending all their time playing computer
games and writing source code for ridiculously useless programs. This is,
however, not the case. The stereotypical programmer doesn’t have any friends.
The professors see this and do their best to help. They attempt to fill the
perceived void in their students’ day by assigning enough homework to keep them
busy for hours at a time. No idle time equates to no time for boredom and
loneliness. The endless supply of work is the solution to the problem; give
computer science majors something else to think about. Unfortunately, not all
students require the aid of their professors and would be happier if they were
allowed more time to socialize and meet new people. Now, assuming that this can
be dealt with and that the pupil of modern technology can feasibly find time to
go out and actually meet people, there are still several other problems.
Many of the general concepts in computing
lead to the demise of any relationship that a computer science major might have
had. Upgrading is a wonderful idea
with technology. When something starts to develop problems or not work as
efficiently as desired, upgrading to something newer and better always works.
Unfortunately, this idea works wonders in computers, but does not work nearly
as well in life. Females do not like being replaced simply because something
new is on the market. One must remember to think ahead and put out just a
little more at the beginning to ensure upgrading will not be required for a
long time, if at all. Another idea that does not work very well in
relationships is that of a user. By
definition, a user is: “an individual that uses a computing system to produce a
result.” (Hughes 473). In many cases, being a user is a wonderful thing. The
meaning of the statement can be changed by replacing the words ‘computing
system’ with ‘girl’. This changes the connotation and will most often result in
a negative outcome. Girls do not like being used and therefore will not date a
user, let alone a super-user.
If it is not bad enough that the general concepts
of computing will ruin one’s ability to find a soul mate, the coding practices
taught will only make things worse. It is constantly preached that the shortest, fastest and easiest approach
is always the best. Although putting as little effort as possible into a
project is very rewarding, showing no sign of incentive will quite often scare
away any interested lady. They like to know that effort is actually being put
into the relationship. This relates closely with lazy evaluation, which will be discussed later. The simple idea of
commands is also one that will chase away a girlfriend. A statement is, “the
specification of a single action.”(Hughes 470). Commands are issued using
direct statements to objects to obtain a desired result. If the output is other
than expected, the commands are checked and modified until the final outcome is
what is expected. When applied to human beings, commands hurt feelings. There
is very little that can be done to debug
this to get a desirable result. By taking the shortest, fastest and easiest
route or by issuing commands in a relationship, it will only lead down the
shortest, fastest path to living life single.
Finally, if the coding practices and
general computing concepts have not hindered any chance of obtaining a
girlfriend, the fundamentals of modern programming will. The closed world assumption is one that,
“assumes … all the facts about the world are included in the model.”(
The education system is at fault for so
many lone computer science students. Although the faculty tries to help keep
the students busy, their work only serves to reduce any chance of meeting
people outside of the program. The general programming concepts are the cause
of misinterpretations which will lead to relationships falling apart. The ideas
demonstrated in coding practices, when applied to problems in real life do not
work to a better solution but often force companions away. Lastly, the
fundamental programming concepts create a mindset unacceptable and undesirable
to soul mates. With these issues in mind, small changes in the curriculum could
mean huge sociological development in the minds of students.
Works Cited
Clark, Robert. Comparative
Programming Languages.
Hughes, David. Fundamentals
of Computer Science Using Java.