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From: tedrick@ernie.BERKELEY.EDU (Tom Tedrick)
Newsgroups: net.cse
Subject: Re: theory and practice in C.S.
Message-ID: <10906@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Tue, 5-Nov-85 20:49:18 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.10906
Posted: Tue Nov  5 20:49:18 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 7-Nov-85 05:35:35 EST
References: <827@dataio.Dataio.UUCP> <2392@sunybcs.UUCP> <260@yetti.UUCP> <2452@sunybcs.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: tedrick@ernie.UUCP (Tom Tedrick)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 42
Keywords: Flame ahead ... fair warning!

********************************************************************
Warning: Flame ahead (still time to hit 'n' ...)

>[ ... criticism of theory is the issue ... ]
>It's the theory of programming I mean.  And
>just because an idea comes out of a "theoretically-oriented research
>environment" (university) doesn't make it a product of theory.  The
>people who do computer science are practitioners--they have to be.
>A researcher who strives to be purely theoretical is often just an
>obstacle to progress.  At the least, he's trying to maintain the old
>distinction between theory and practice in a field where they're
>inseparable.

Ah ... Now I am beginning to understand. Although the theory
of algorithms, theory of computation, etc. seems very beautiful
to me, I have to agree that the "theory of how people should program"
is a field infested with intellectual lightweights who have generated
lots of nonsense to burden the rest of us with, so as to justify
their existence. I think programming is mainly a matter of
practice and common sense with a reasonable dose of intelligence
thrown in, and theory has contributed very little of practical
value to the problem of how to teach programming. I guess
eliminating "go to" was a success though. 

The worst thing is when students with little experience have
been indoctrinated into some absurd style of programming, then
treat the paradigm they are familar with as some kind of
holy revelation, requiring them to exterminate anyone who
believes in a different style. I have had first hand experience
of persecution at the hands of some of these small minded idiots
who were working as lab assistants for me.

I am trying to develop a "theory of theories" (purely for my
own enlightenment) which explains why these "theoretical
parasites" exist.  I think it has to do with funding being
available to subsidize research in the field.

End Flame.
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  -Tom
   tedrick@ucbernie.arpa