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CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

sp23.datastructur.es

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Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#31

Post by 2devnull »

specialist wrote: post #25
Myrmornis wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Much of the industry uses algorithm and data structure problems as a way of assessing "smartness" in interviews -- the idea is that even though it's often not needed for the job, giving people the challenge of learning that area at the intersection of computer science and software engineering correlates with how strong a contributor they'll be. I.e. if you don't know it but can pick up an area like that, that's a goo…

Just like with dating preferences, leet code interviews are merely a fast rejection heuristic. Because there needs to be some kind of filter. And we haven't found any better. If we took more time, with dating and interviewing, we'd probably find a lot more diamonds in the rough. But ain't nobody got no time for all that.

“ain't nobody got no time for all that”

Until interest rates get hiked.

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#32

Post by HammadB »

ssbash wrote: post #11
DesertVarnish wrote: post #3

I took this course with Hug many years ago. He's a truly gifted educator and I learned so much from the projects.

I also took 61B with Hug. I had Denero for 61A. Great professors. Berkeley is lucky to have to them.

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Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#33

Post by blagie »

ericjmorey wrote: post #28
blagie wrote: post #15

Here's my question: This seems wonderful for 2010. It's 2023. We have 3B1B, SoME, Python Tutor (which now does many languages), and various types of fairly smart tools to support kids as they're coding (e.g. Jupyter/Pluto-notebook style system, ones like Khan Academy, and ones with a split pane). Has this progress been applied to algorithms? If not, why not?

I don't understand what your question is? How is the 2023 course material taught at UC Berkeley being publicly accessible not exactly the thing you're asking about?

I'll simplify.

In 2023, there are much more effective ways to teach computer science than tossing lecture videos up on a web site with homework assignments. MIT pioneered that in the nineties with OCW. It was a good idea at the time.

Now, we have ways of doing online learning which are an order of magnitude more engaging, and lead to much better learning outcomes.

I would never use the Berkeley stuff with kids. I might use it to help inspire what I do with kids. I would use many of the more animated, interactive things with kids, if available. I was asking if anyone has done that. If not, I'm surprised no one has done it.

To be clear, I'm not dissing Berkeley for what they did here. Posting this sort of thing is great. It's just a tiny fraction of the impact of a real learning experience.

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#34

Post by kyawzazaw »

blagie wrote: post #33
ericjmorey wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand what your question is? How is the 2023 course material taught at UC Berkeley being publicly accessible not exactly the thing you're asking about?

I'll simplify. In 2023, there are much more effective ways to teach computer science than tossing lecture videos up on a web site with homework assignments. MIT pioneered that in the nineties with OCW. It was a good idea at the time. Now, we have ways of doing online learning which are an order of magnitude more engaging, and lead to much better learning outcomes. I would never use the Berkeley stuff with kids. I mig…

Well, Khan Academy has this: https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/computer-science

> It's just a tiny fraction of the impact of a real learning experience.

Well, it's mostly intended for their students. The access is just open. It seems to work well for their students.

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#35

Post by jcranmer »

noobdev9000 wrote: post #16

Is there a point for working programmer to learn these in 2023, rather than just treating them as abstract interfaces?

A working programmer probably needs to have the general rudiments of algorithmic analysis to write good code--to understand why a O(1) algorithm is usually better than an O(N) algorithm, to understand what makes an algorithm O(1) or O(N), and to understand the basic properties of the canned library functions they use.

The basic list and map datatypes (array list, linked list, balanced search tree, hashtable) are good ways to get through these concepts, although hashtables and balanced search trees are in the oh-god-don't-ever-try-to-implement-these-yourself category. Graphs are also a pretty versatile data structure that has wide use, it certainly doesn't hurt to learn about all the algorithms already solved for graphs and how they might be adapted to your use cases. Tries, compression, and disjoint sets are I think a little too niche (although I do end up using disjoint sets a fair amount).

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#36

Post by barbecue_sauce »

pigsinzen wrote: post #26
bloemheuvel1 wrote: post #9

could somebody explain how to recreate his coding environment in sublime text? looks very nice for learning and following along.

> in sublime text? Not sure if you're under the impression that he is using Sublime Text or we're looking at different editors. In the video from his second class, it looks like he is using a Jetbrains[0] product. [0] https://www.jetbrains.com/

In the first class, he uses Sublime Text.

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#39

Post by mdaniel »

markus_zhang wrote: post #20

I have to appreciate the intelligence of top notch CS school students. I once took the equivalent class in CMU and couldn't even complete the first assignment. Forgot which one but the last problem is too hard for me. Then I realized I better just study whatever I'm interested in and go back to algo if needed.

A reasonable person may ask whether a student's inability to complete the first assignment is a failure of the student, or of the support structure (materials, lecture style, any applicable TA)

Re: CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2023 UC Berkeley

#40

Post by alex_lav »

mailey wrote: post #22

speaking of, are there any benefits/disadvantages of learning data structures in java/python compared to C/C++ ?

Unsure why this is downvoted? This question seems reasonable.

Personally I think Python specifically allows an easier understanding of the data structure in principal, but C/C++ would create a better understanding of data structures as they operate with constraints like memory/resource availability. Kinda depends what you’re after I think.

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