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Ask HN: What is the best way to get into Physics as a coder?

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Re: Ask HN: What is the best way to get into Physics as a coder?

#6
You don't need to know about physics.

Some people who do know about physics don't need coders and some do.

You need to find people who do know about physics, but who still need coders.

Physics is just too big a subject to 'know about it' enough to 'get into physics as a coder'.

Yes, you will need to know about a specific 'problem domain' within physics

One that someone somewhere needs a coder for.

But start with people, not with physics

People need coders, physics doesn't

People have physics problems that they need coders to solve

Read up, find the people with the unsolved physics coding problems that you can work out how to help them solve

Then your problems will really begin

Then you'll find out if getting into physics as a coder was right for you

Re: Ask HN: What is the best way to get into Physics as a coder?

#8
As someone who's done the opposite ... gone from physics to coding ... I'd suggest the first thing to do is question your premise. What exactly does "getting into physics" mean for you? What actually comes to your mind if you imagine tasks a physicist might perform ? Which of those do you think you could do as a programmer, and which have you got no idea about how to approach ? Such a questioning approach is typical for physics. Why are things the way they are? What predictions can one make ? etc....

Or do you even mean "physics" in the sense the word is used in computer game development ? Which is "largely" (an over broad term) mechanics; how things move, flow, deform under external forces.

Can you give us more details? That would help with giving you pointers.

Re: Ask HN: What is the best way to get into Physics as a coder?

#9
As in get a "get a job in physics" or "understand physics"? If it's the former I'd suggest boning up on your FORTRAN and applying to scientific computing jobs. If it's the latter I'd recommend Khan academy. You're going to want to relearn your diff eqs. and your PDEs, plus some linear algebra.
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