Nairaland Forum

Mathematics and programming are very related. Computer - Science in itself, is a branch of applied mathematics. But does being good at pure math necessarily translate to being good at programming?? Does one need to be a math guru to be a programming guru?

I dont believe so. But funny, all great programmers i know are maths whiz. . .maybe just maybe there might be a good correlation

some peeps in my class that are better mathematicians than me find programming tougher than me,

IbroSaunks:

some peeps in my class that are better mathematicians than me find programming tougher than me,

getting good grades isn't everything, Both math and programming require logical thinking, If u are good at logic, Then u re good

@Poster, if you want to be among the really good ones, you definitely need to strengthen your math skills. That is a fact in Computer science.

Kobojunkie:

@Poster, if you want to be among the really good ones, you definitely need to strengthen your math skills. That is a fact in Computer science.

but does one need to b a guru?

IbroSaunks:

but does one need to b a guru?

Depends on how how advanced you want to go. For instance, anyone with a focus in areas such as Cryptography, Algorithms Research, industrial research, Parallel systems, requires some serious math knowledge, but if you are simply trying to get a job as a programmer at the next IT dept in any company, you can get buy with not much maths.

And being a guru is not required, but you have to have some solid math skills. Solid Algebra skills are always good to have, no matter what your area of study.

^^^I completely agree with kobojunkie.
I have seen some great statisfical analytical softwares that some programmers made. Graph API, banking applications, applications like facebook website itself, google search and all that.
Can you immagine for a second if those programmers are not good in mathematics? or those that made this web app - http://www.nyse.com/about/listed/lcddata.html?ticker=BAC&fq=D&ezd=1W&index=2
Something like microsoft excel for instance is another application i can refer to - at least we all know that.

Kobojunkie sums it all up, very well done.
You just need to be good in the subsets of Maths: logical thinking, problem solving, good problem solving methods, being able to spot patterns.

iv never failed it before, it was just one of d stuff I didn't enjoy. I always thought, "to what end"? when I'm studying something and I can answer that question well, it's usually nice learning it.

I 'm having problem choosing my major right now between MSC and CSC, they 're both 5 yrs, b. Tech and the registration 'll close next week.

@ OP- I agree with wat kobojunkie said.

It helps if you're a mathematics guru. Programming involves using logic(mathematics) to solve problems. However having a basic understanding of mathematics is sufficient.

I don't like math! 



where can i start from ?

U dnt need to be a guru in math b4 u can b a programmer.u should b able to think deep and be able to imagine things. Programmimng dnt need calculation na just english and computer will change it to computer language for u

boles80sg:

U dnt need to be a guru in math b4 u can b a programmer.u should b able to think deep and be able to imagine things. Programmimng dnt need calculation na just english and computer will change it to computer language for u

This is an ignorant statement. Even though i don't think one does not have to be a maths guru to be a programmer, a little maths skills is needed.

Not ignorant, just too much hello world and CMS

It depends on what you are coding - 3D graphics and complex simulations definitely needs math knowledge, database programming probably not so much.

if a man = old
kill
else if
a man = young
spare
else if
he is not old or young
lock him up
else end
This is a typical program, and the simplest look at it tells u it is nothing but a piece of logic.
If y=5 and h=6, then what is k if k=y+h? Answer is 11.
A close look at the math above reveals that math is also based on logical reasoning. Therefore a good knowledge of math would aid ur programming ability.

Yes but you need to understand more of the philosophies rather than the fundamental derivatives and available applications. With this in mind, the possibilities of developing applications will come easily.

life_style:

I don't like math! 



where can i start from ?

Try to like it! You need to have good interest in mathematics or forget about the programming altogether.

Like Kobo said, it depends on what kind of programming and how far you want to go. If you’re doing something more than programming websites (Php MySql), you will probably need to be ok in math.

I just checked the requirements for a Computer Science degree and you need to take Calculus 1 & 2, Linear Algebra, and Probability and Statistics before graduating. However, you don't need to be a guru to pass the courses listed above but you do need to be good in math.

I would also add that being good in mathematics will help with the logical and axiomatic reasoning needed to be a successful programmer.

Lol @ you do not need math to be a programmer! Actually, many companies today are searching for people with math degrees to program. Here’s an article about companies looking for a Data Scientist. A data scientist is “someone who can obtain, scrub, explore, model and interpret data, blending hacking, statistics and machine learning.” This is the future!

http://gigaom.com/2010/12/16/wanted-data-scientists-to-turn-information-into-gold/?utm_medium=content&utm_campaign=syndication&utm_source=cnn&utm_content=spread-the-word-math-is-the-new-sexiness-in-it_455703

just wanted to add: while both math and programming require critical thinking, programming forces one to b more creative. in math there r formulas u have to follow to get a result, in programming, there r no formulas.

IbroSaunks:

just wanted to add: while both math and programming require critical thinking, programming forces one to b more creative. in math there r formulas u have to follow to get a result, in programming, there r no formulas.

Wrong. It is called algorithm.

I know what an algo is, u don't get my definition of formulas

for example. to differentiate products,the formula is u (dv/dx) + v(du/dx). doing it another way would just give u a wrong answer.

u can write different algos to solve a single problem, the question would be which would b more efficient given particular constraints or the context of a problem.

Everything you can do in math, you can achieve in programming, but programming does much more than math alone can ever attempt to do. Therefore, I'll turn the question on its head by stating that; to be a math guru, one is advised to take up programming.

IbroSaunks:

for example. to differentiate products,the formula is u (dv/dx) + v(du/dx). doing it another way would just give u a wrong answer.

And programming loops do it in a totally natural way thats suited to the problem at hand.
In fact, many non-starters in math can grasp programming methods much better than they can grasp formal math formula's, so should we not be teaching programming rather than math in schools?

One needs to be very good in maths to be good in computer science, but not nearly so much to be a good programmer

Beaf:

Everything you can do in math, you can achieve in programming, but programming does much more than math alone can ever attempt to do. Therefore, I'll turn the question on its head by stating that; to be a math guru, one is advised to take up programming.

True because you're most likely not going to solve your mathematics problem by hand. You need Mathematica, Matlab or Maple.

Beaf, this your logic get k-leg oo.

IbroSaunks:

u can write different algos to solve a single problem, the question would be which would b more efficient given particular constraints or the context of a problem.

Most programs that require calculations will have access to library functions that you can call.