Turing Thangs

gistfile1.txt

Thangs for Turing

"And, most important, they made the courses fun and emphasized ways in which CS can benefit society."

I think this was a really important point. Programming can seem like a dry subject, but if you turn learning it into a game it becomes more fun. And more importantly, if you can show how programming benefits the world around you it will attract more people as well. Though I don’t like this idea that women program because we’re here to save the world. We can also do it because we just enjoy it.

Removing the “macho effect” is really important. Everyone has to start somewhere, but when you’re first getting into some of these things it seems like some people are born knowing more. It’s that they’ve put in more time, but you don’t see that. Grouping people by their experience level limits this competitive aspect and allows people to enjoy learning where they are.

I tried to go to the Grace Hopper Convention and the tickets sold out in a day. This is kind of a sore point for me. They need more tickets or a bigger venue!

I like the demystifying success. This is very Tony Robbins. He says copy successful people and you’ll be like them. Unfortunately for women and minorities there are few success stories to emulate, so it’s brand new territory. What makes a white male successful in the tech industry may not work for a woman. This is where there is the most room for improvement.

Whenever I read these articles, I think I’ve never heard a woman say that the world is changing for the worse in terms of careers. It’s like watching football and seeing only men play, then hearing players complain about salaries, or injuries, or losing. Women aren’t even invited into this arena.

By Go By Truck News+
Updated: May 6, 2013.
While truck driving remains a male dominated profession, the number of women pursuing and earning their commercial drivers' licenses is growing. Of the more than three million truckers in the United States, it is estimated more than 200,000 are women.

I know I need to have more empathy, but women have been sitting on the sidelines for centuries waiting for a chance. I’m sorry the world is changing fast, but honestly I want it to change even faster.

I don’t know if the “moral fabric of our youth” is fraying. Rather, they have access to more data at a greater speed. So while cheating is easier, it’s also that these kids have to consume and digest and tone of information. The best way to get around cheating is to assess them on whether or not they can do a given problem. Eventually you’re going to run up against a white board, and there’s no way you can cheat your way around that. So the answer is more white boards more often.

I have friends who work at Google and they tell me they spend 80% of their job just searching information. Is there cheating in the real world? Technology is like fashion. There are no patents, it’ s just who ever builds it first or best.

I do love that Turing doesn’t grade really, beyond the 1 to 4 scale (that’s nice, a 1 is not so far from a 4 after all). It feels like Turings goal is to turn out white boaders, not A students.