Theoretical computer science

[gnome]

How about adding Theoretical Computer Science and AI to the description of the Set Theory, Logic, etc. Math sub-forum? I've been posting some threads there as that seemed to be the most appropriate place. But this subject seems sort of lost there. We might get more interesting discussion of these topics if they seemed to actually "belong" someplace in PF. (I suppose they could go down in the Technology area, but they don't really belong in any of the existing sub-forums there. I think the Set Theory-Logic area seems more comfortable.)

 

[CrankFan]

That doesn't sound like a bad idea. Maybe a new subsection under mathematics can be opened for theory of computation?

Anyway, the new green buttons look sweet.

 

[ramollari]

MAYBE A COMPLETELY NEW SECTION! Come on, this is scientific forum, and we shouldn't discuss just about hardware and software, and about latest technologies. UGHHH!
So I suggest to have a theoretical computing sections where we will talk about data structures and algorithms, AI, Information theory, programming, software engineering, UML, object technologies, etc, etc.

 

[TenaliRaman]

I came to this site, purely for my liking for physics (ofcourse i don't post there, since i am not even qualified to post anything there ... everyone is just too good! I just spoof around in the physics forum and picking some infos but that's abt it)

When i actually came to this site, i was surprised that this forum had such diversification. I guess it would be nice to add computer related forums but it would depend on how many computer-science students actually visit this forum (i can guess a handful in here are from CS).

In any case, if PF plans to add CS section, i have an idea as to how to divide the sections into subforums (Personally i believe these topics can be added under the technology forum which could be renamed as "Computer Science and Technology", thereby retaining the current forums under Technology and adding the new ones and thus ensuring backward compatibility :-] )

Ofcourse it also depends if dduardo is ready to take some new forums under him to moderate :D

-- AI

 

[Moonbear]

I thought we had recently discussed this issue. I think the answer was that an earlier version of PF did have a computer science section and it was under-utilized, so dropped. It's possible that the problem isn't placement in the forum you've chosen, but just a lack of people here who have the knowledge of that subject to discuss it, in which case creating a new forum wouldn't be terribly helpful.

Maybe it's time to set up a poll to find out if there are enough computer scientists here who would participate in such a discussion to warrant going to the trouble of finding a specific home for the topics. Unless they're using computer science to address an application already discussed on this board, I doubt this is where many computer scientists would be hanging out (especially since they ought to be better than the rest of us at setting up their own forums elsewhere on the internet to gather).

 

[quantumdude]

We never had a Comp Sci Forum. All those threads either went under General Math or Software. But I do like the idea of adding something to a Forum title, as opposed to creating a new Forum.

 

[loseyourname]

There have been discussions of AI both in the technology forums and in the Metaphysics and Epistemology Forum (due to the implications for philosophy of mind). I wouldn't recommend the Metaphysics forum for that, though. It gets rather frustrating. Few people there will know the slightest thing about computer science and are more interested in proving a priori that you can't create AI than in devising methods of actually doing it. There is an AI forum at www.ai-forum.org, part of a larger site devoted to the development of AI, but it isn't very active. Maybe if you can think of interesting topics to discuss, it will become more active. I can't even remember the last time I posted there.

 

[PerennialII]

I think overall it might be a good idea to address computational sciences in one single location (other material than technology) ... different branches of physics & math use very similar methods and it's certainly an ever booming area (or then I'm biased for working with convergence problems all day long ).