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Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

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Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#131

Post by maccio92 »

lnsru wrote: post #69
zaarn wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IMO the best IoT is the DIY IoT, the kind that isn't really IoT but rather "I put Wifi on a raspi and connected it to a PCB". Thankfully the online resources around electronics are plentiful and PCBs can be had for under 10$ incl. S&H. That way I can make all my lighting IoT without having to deal with the garbage of the IoT industry.

Yes, IoT is great when you can DIY. But when you need to send a technician 2-4 times a year for each node... it’s a problem, not a business.

It's a business for repair technicians :)

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#132

Post by maccio92 »

SuddsMcDuff wrote: post #36
wellboy wrote: post #11

Blockchain, though no one on hn really understands it. :D

It's an unfortunate characteristic of many in the cryptocurrency community, that they think anyone who doesn't support crypto simply doesn't understand it. And by extension, as soon as they do understand it they will become supporters. No. There are those who do understand blockchain and still don't support it. A great example is professor Jorge Stolfi. He is one of the more prominent detractors, and yet he routinely…

It's an unfortunate characteristic of many that conflate cryptocurrency and blockchain as one and the same inseparable idea. Cryptocurrency is only one application of one type of blockchain.

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#134

Post by virgilp »

lnsru wrote: post #42
tugberkk wrote: post #22

Internet of Things. It is still in development and there are lots of stuff to work on.

Just another hype. Sensors and internet are here for decades. Internet is ok, but “things” are way too expensive and not reliable yet.

Maybe, maybe not. Smartphones & touchscreens were "here" for decades by the time iPhone launched. Or, take a look at the timeline of "social media": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_social_media

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#135

Post by Shinchy »

dbatten wrote: post #70

Secure Multi-party Computation. The basic idea is developing methods for two (or more) parties with sensitive data to be able to compute some function of their data without having to reveal the data to one another. The classic example is developing an algorithm that allows two people to figure out who is paid more without either revealing what their salary is. Such algorithms get significantly more complicated if the…

That sounds really cool, you don't happen to have any links to the Satellite Collision thing that guy put together?

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#136

Post by Maven911 »

niklasd wrote: post #88
terminalcommand wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Slightly off-topic but I wanted to ask why and when did you start studying CS after law. I recently graduated from law school and now am an intern at a law firm. I have a strong interest for CS, and it bothered me for a long time that I went to law school instead of CS. I'v overcome those feelings over the years and dedicated myself to become a lawyer. But your post caught my interest. I'd be glad if you could share…

After my law degree I worked for a year in a big international law firm (I didn't yet had my license, so I was a kind of trainee – similar to you position right now). I realised that there is a huge interest in technical solutions to make the work more efficient (often labeled as "Legal Tech"). But there was very little actual understanding of technologie, which I think is one of the reasons why there aren't yet many…

I would love to work with you or bounce off some ideas on how to changeup the somewhat legacy legal tech

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#137

Post by gchadwick »

Davidbrcz wrote: post #24
meuk wrote: post #6

AI, machine learning, and neural networks are, of courwe, booming, but I consider them to be hyped. I consider type theory and formal verification to be more promising (but more academic). Distributed systems and everything having to do with parallel and/or high-performance systems is a good midway between what the industry likes and what's interesting from an academic point of view.

Haha. Formal verification has been around for 40/50 years and we can't say it is a wide success from a industrial point of view. It has some achievements in terms of results/methods and projects checked, but on a daily basis, pretty much no one uses it. We are ages away of having every programmer understanding formal verification and having all programs verified/proved. Type theory is in a similar situation. Many iss…

> but on a daily basis, pretty much no one uses it.

Maybe not for software but certainly in the hardware world formal verification is common place with mature tools available from multiple vendors.

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#139

Post by terminalcommand »

niklasd wrote: post #88
terminalcommand wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Slightly off-topic but I wanted to ask why and when did you start studying CS after law. I recently graduated from law school and now am an intern at a law firm. I have a strong interest for CS, and it bothered me for a long time that I went to law school instead of CS. I'v overcome those feelings over the years and dedicated myself to become a lawyer. But your post caught my interest. I'd be glad if you could share…

After my law degree I worked for a year in a big international law firm (I didn't yet had my license, so I was a kind of trainee – similar to you position right now). I realised that there is a huge interest in technical solutions to make the work more efficient (often labeled as "Legal Tech"). But there was very little actual understanding of technologie, which I think is one of the reasons why there aren't yet many…

Thanks a lot for your detailed and motivating answer. Actually I know quite a bit about programming. But generally try to hide that I'm highly interested in computers. Because if anyone notices, I get asked why I chose to study law in the first place. Over the years I learned not to look like a computer nerd and how to look and behave like a lawyer. I also had some problems with interpersonal communication, but through trial and error I've become socially adept and now I can get things done.

It is really nice to hear that my skills and interest in computers won't go wasted in practicing law. I hope my firm also gets offered an ML tool where I can show my skills. For now I can navigate the document management systems with ease, use some word add-ins (contract companion etc.), I guess that'll change in time and I'll have access to more sophisticated tools.

Re: Ask HN: What are the most interesting emerging fields in computer science?

#140

Post by simonhughes22 »

Adversarial Machine Learning. Fake news detection using ML. Integrating 'good old fashioned AI' ideas with modern ML techniques - to some extent Alpha Go went in this direction. While I am glad AI has moved far more towards the machine learning direction, i suspect the decades of AI research that preceded it may come back in a form that is combined with more modern techniques in some way. I see Alpha Go (and Alpha Zero) as steps in that direction. Also, applying deep learning to search engines and making that scale efficiently. I suspect google has partly solved this already, but haven't gone public with any of the tech, but that's pure speculation.
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