How important is Discrete Mathematics for a Computer Scientist?

Posted by mort on Programmers See other posts from Programmers or by mort
Published on 2012-08-31T14:43:38Z Indexed on 2012/08/31 15:52 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 327

Filed under:

self-improvement

|

education

|

Parallelism

As the title says,

How important is Discrete Mathematics for a Computer Scientist? Background: I'm pursuing a Master's degree with a focus on fundamentals such as Algorithms, Complexity and Computability Theory and Programming Languages to get a good foundation for working in the field of Parallel Computing.

Some more background: My university grants a lot of freedom in the choices of courses for my Master's degree. It's officially called "Software Engineering", but due to a the broad range of electives, a different focus is possible. Interestingly, none of the electives is a lecture in Math! I'm thinking about doing a course about Discrete Mathematics that would take half a semester to complete successfully, even if I can't use it for my degree. So with this question I'm trying to find out if the effort is justifiable.

© Programmers or respective owner

Related posts about self-improvement

A toolset for self improvement and learning [closed]

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
Possible Duplicate: I’m having trouble learning I've been working as an IT consultant for 1½ years and I am very passionate about programming. Before that I studied MSc Software Engineering and had both a part time job as a developer for a big telecom company. During that time I also took… >>> More
Time management and self improvement

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
Hi, I hope I can open a discussion on this topic as this is not a specific problem. It's a topic I hope to get some ideas on how people in similar situation as mine manage their time. OK, I'm a single developer on a software project for the last 6-8 months. The project I'm working on uses several… >>> More
Time management and self improvement

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
I hope I can open a discussion on this topic as this is not a specific problem. It's a topic I hope to get some ideas on how people in similar situation as mine manage their time. OK, I'm a single developer on a software project for the last 6-8 months. The project I'm working on uses several technologies… >>> More
Software development books are useful, but when to find the time to read them?

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
I have 5 books in my "read-wish-list". When do I read them? I mean I could force myself to use 1 hour during working hours, but this will last for 2 days then someone will ask me to do more "high priority things". One option can be reading at night, but also this has limits, even because I prefer… >>> More
When returning from a period of not programming, do you find you've improved?

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
It seems as though whenever I take an extended break from programming—whether to pursue other interests or simply because I fall out of the habit for a while—I invariably find that when I return to a project and set to coding, I come with an abundance of new ideas, novel approaches, and… >>> More

Related posts about education

How can an amateur programmer become professional without formal education (college) outside the US

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
What is the path? Do I get certified (Microsoft,Sun,etc)? How do I build reputation? How do I make myself valuable without a college degree? How do I make others recognize my value? These are just a few questions but all point in the same direction. Are any of you in the same situation? What… >>> More
Oracle Solutions for Higher Education

as seen on Oracle Blogs - Search for 'Oracle Blogs'
Curtiss Barnes, VP of Product Strategy for Education and Research describes Oracle's best in class offerings for Higher Education institutions, Oracle's tremendous global market presence and the strong partnership Oracle maintains with its education customers to ensure our products meet the needs… >>> More
Oracle's Applications Solution Centers provide value to Higher Education Customers

as seen on Oracle Blogs - Search for 'Oracle Blogs'
Fred speaks with Paul Purcell, Business Technology Architect from City University and Davis Bennett, Senior Practice Director for Oracle's Applications Solution Centers about the benefits and cost savings organizations are receiving from using these Centers to implement their ERP applications. >>> More
Education - "Elementary Workforce Readiness"

as seen on Oracle Technology Network - Search for 'Oracle Technology Network'
Oracle helps students prepare for global challenges. >>> More
Which order would you teach programming languages in, when teaching a newbie?

as seen on Programmers - Search for 'Programmers'
If you had to design a study program, with a breadth-of-programming-languages requirement, which stated that the student should be exposed to all major concepts and methodologies that can be taught through (at the minimum) 6 programming languages, which programming languages would you choose to teach… >>> More