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Advanced Data Structures (2017)

courses.csail.mit.edu

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Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#11

Post by paulgb »

jbarciauskas wrote: post #9
po_ wrote: post #6

the professor is a fascinating guy: http://erikdemaine.org/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Demaine EDIT: so is the coauthor! http://joebergeron.io/posts/post_four.html

He's obviously incredibly smart to have achieved what he did at such a young age, but he's actually a joy to listen to as well.

I was trying to remember why his name sounded familiar. 12 years ago, when I was an 18 year old with mediocre math grades trying to figure out what to do with my life, I went to a guest lecture he was doing down the street at Dalhousie University. It was the first time I remember being excited about math, which became my major.

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#14

Post by arnioxux »

I watched these lectures a few years ago and they were really good.

Since this is meant to be a graduate level research course, I wonder if any cutting edge topics have been added since? Were there any major advances or new ideas in fundamental data structures in the past few years?

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#15

Post by jammygit »

As a busy self-learner, when is it time to learn data structures in depth? I feel like there are always 10 other technologies I need to know more urgently (eg, more bash, Linux, testing frameworks, deep learning, c++ libraries, linear algebra, common security mistakes/attacks, OpenGL, etc)

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#16

Post by joebergeron »

jammygit wrote: post #15

As a busy self-learner, when is it time to learn data structures in depth? I feel like there are always 10 other technologies I need to know more urgently (eg, more bash, Linux, testing frameworks, deep learning, c++ libraries, linear algebra, common security mistakes/attacks, OpenGL, etc)

Given the bulk of the things you've listed here, which seem to serve very practical purposes, maybe never. I wouldn't call data structures a "technology" so much as I would label them as a theoretical underpinning to much of computer science. If your goal is to learn practical technologies (which is a good goal!) you don't really _need_ to learn data structures deeply -- they're just not a skill you need in day-to-day software life (for most people). I'm a software engineer, and the idea of implementing so much as a binary heap (which is nearly one of the first data structures you learn) at work is a preposterous idea. That said, if you want to learn about data structures, go for it! They're incredibly interesting and will give you a way deeper appreciation for computer science and the work that goes into developing complex algorithms. There's just not necessarily a "pedagogical" place to stick in learning data structures with the sorts of technologies you've listed.

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#17

Post by 420codebro »

joebergeron wrote: post #10

Hey! I’m a coauthor with this guy :^). Incredibly fascinating (and extremely smart) dude. His interest in origami is what drew me to MIT in the first place, since I was interested in it as well from a young age. A few years ago I took his class on the computability/complexity theory of folding, and we ended up solving an open problem in the field and published a paper out of it [0]. If you had told highschool me some…

That's amazing. Congrats!

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#18

Post by Swizec »

joebergeron wrote: post #16
jammygit wrote: post #15

As a busy self-learner, when is it time to learn data structures in depth? I feel like there are always 10 other technologies I need to know more urgently (eg, more bash, Linux, testing frameworks, deep learning, c++ libraries, linear algebra, common security mistakes/attacks, OpenGL, etc)

Given the bulk of the things you've listed here, which seem to serve very practical purposes, maybe never. I wouldn't call data structures a "technology" so much as I would label them as a theoretical underpinning to much of computer science. If your goal is to learn practical technologies (which is a good goal!) you don't really _need_ to learn data structures deeply -- they're just not a skill you need in day-to-da…

> the idea of implementing so much as a binary heap

In my experience knowing how to implement such things isn't very useful in daily practical programming. Knowing that they exist, what problems they solve, the pros and cons that is incredibly useful day to day. Especially if you can recognize when you've accidentally strayed into implementing one of them under the guise of solving a business problem. You can then apply known patterns or have the foresight to say "Yo this is a solved problem, let's find a library"

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#19

Post by a-afterglow »

joebergeron wrote: post #12
po_ wrote: post #6

the professor is a fascinating guy: http://erikdemaine.org/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Demaine EDIT: so is the coauthor! http://joebergeron.io/posts/post_four.html

Aww, thanks :)

Just had to let you know I'm listening to Mélange and it's freaking great.

Re: Advanced Data Structures (2017)

#20

Post by caconym_ »

jammygit wrote: post #15

As a busy self-learner, when is it time to learn data structures in depth? I feel like there are always 10 other technologies I need to know more urgently (eg, more bash, Linux, testing frameworks, deep learning, c++ libraries, linear algebra, common security mistakes/attacks, OpenGL, etc)

If you're learning these topics for purposes of career advancement, probably there is not much reason to go much beyond the fundamentals that you might study for a FAANG-type interview. If you know that much, you can probably recognize a situation where you're missing something and go look for it.

Even that is probably overkill for a lot of people, practically speaking.

On the other hand, if you're learning for fun, you should study the thing you're most excited about because you will do the most interesting things with knowledge and skills that you're passionate about.

Ultimately, in my personal experience, the latter course has also led to career advancement.

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