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From: dml@NADC.ARPA (D. Loewenstern)
Newsgroups: comp.ai.digest
Subject: Re: Is Computer Science is Science?
Message-ID: <8709171903.AA06484@NADC.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 17-Sep-87 15:03:33 EDT
Article-I.D.: NADC.8709171903.AA06484
Posted: Thu Sep 17 15:03:33 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 20-Sep-87 13:06:03 EDT
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>From: kodak!elmgate!ram@cs.rochester.edu  (Randy Martens) 
 
>I am of the firm opinion that there is NO such thing as 
>computer science.  To quote (and I have forgotten the attribution) 
>"Computer Science bears the same relationship to Real Science, that 
>plumbing bears to Hydrodynamics." 
 
>There is, however, Computer Engineering. (and Software Engineering, 
>and Systems Engineering etc.).  Science is the discovery of the new. 
>Engineering takes what the scientists have found, and finds ways 
>to do useful things with it.  The two are like Yin and Yang, closely 
>interrelated, but not the same, and each dependant on the other. 
 
I think that what Mr. Martens has said is: 
  1. a. Science is the discovery of the new. 
     b. There is no such thing as computer science. 
     => There is no discovery of the new in the realm of computers. 
  2. a. Engineering takes what the scientists have found... 
     => Computer Engineering takes what the Computer Scientists have found... 
     b. There is no such thing as computer science. 
     => There are no computer scientists. 
     => Nothing has been found by computer scientists. 
     => Computer Engineering takes nothing and finds ways to do useful
        things with it.  (8v))




David Loewenstern
Naval Air Development Center
code 7013
Warminster, PA 18974-5000

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