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Will i enjoy studying CS???

Hi guys considering studiying CS at Uni hopefully at warwick or UCL, but dont know if i would enjoy it or be any good at it, i only have a rough idea about what the course is about and what sort of personality or characteristics i would need to enjoy it and do well in it.

Any recomended books which can give me an insight

thankyou

Reply 1

antipesto93

3

i am in the exact same boat, i asked similar questions on here but didnt get too many answers,
Generally people say

You need to like Maths
Think logically
Like technology in general?
thats it really!

I was not sure if i would like/be good at the programming aspect, so i started learning C++ (from the 'C++ in easy steps) book and i learnt the first chapter or two and found it was no that bad.
might try java as well

i help its ok! (easy!)

Reply 2

TheQueenOfComputerScience

13

You won't know untill you give it a go.

Reply 3

hotshot45

OP

1

TheQueenOfComputerScience

You won't know untill you give it a go.

How learn comp languages?? :s-smilie:

Reply 4

antipesto93

3

get a book!
the ' In easy steps' series have been recomended to me.
Start with Java ( or C++ if you are up for a challenge)

Reply 5

TheQueenOfComputerScience

13

ashton.alfred

How learn comp languages?? :s-smilie:

Just try the degree, there will be loads of clueless people in there :smile:

ah to be clueless again!

Reply 6

INTit

17

antipesto93

i am in the exact same boat, i asked similar questions on here but didnt get too many answers,
Generally people say

You need to like Maths
Think logically
Like technology in general?
thats it really!

I was not sure if i would like/be good at the programming aspect, so i started learning C++ (from the 'C++ in easy steps) book and i learnt the first chapter or two and found it was no that bad.
might try java as well

i help its ok! (easy!)

I wouldn't necessarily say you need to of liked maths at school. I was never good at maths in school as unless I can use it practically I don't remember it and wont be interested by it. Thinking logically is what you need, but you shouldn't be afraid of maths as a lot of problems require it but the maths involved is usually applied.

Often problems in CS require domain specific knowledge. E.G. if your writing a game or something graphical you may need to know linear algebra or physics or if you are creating a model of an ant colony you may need to know biology. This is where a lot of maths creeps in.

At its root CS is the study of algorithms and how they can be applied for problem solving, whether the problem is finding the optimal method for sorting numbers in ascending order, simulating intelligent behaviour in a game, modelling complex systems or encrypting data.
Computers arn't even needed to write an algorithm ever think about what you're doing when you sort a hand of cards?

"Start with an empty left hand and the cards face down on the table. We then remove one card at a time from the table and insert it into the correct position in the left hand. To find the correct position for a card, we compare it with each of the cards already in the hand" (Introduction to algorithms)

Thats called an 'insertion sort' an algorithm we use without even thinking.

CS also usually covers areas such as studying how modern computers operate, structuring large programs well, learning the languages used to create them and managing programming projects however people are starting to label this as 'software engineering'.

I'm sure if any of this post sounds interesting you will enjoy it.

Reply 7

coldplasma

16

If you can think in discrete mathematics, then you'll probably enjoy it. Maths in compsci isn't just about 'finding the optimal algorithm', there's a lot more and much duller maths involved than that. Proof by induction is nearly everywhere as well as set theory and also a bunch other stuff relating to the theory of computing such as finite state machines and turing machines. All of which is absolutely neccessary to gain an understanding about computing.

Reply 8

Planto

16

Watch some MIT computer science lectures:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6U-i4gXkLM

People will try to explain the nature of CS to you, but until you actually study it, descriptions can be quite confusing. You really need to learn some computer science to get an insight into what it really is. Since MIT is just about the best institution in the world for CS and they make all of their course material available for free, what excuse have you got?

Will i enjoy studying CS???

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