People think that computer science is the art of geniuses but the actual reality is the opposite, just many people doing things that build on eachother, like a wall of mini stones.
Meaning of the quote
Computer science is not just for super-smart people. It's actually a bunch of regular people working together and building on each other's ideas, like adding small stones to make a big wall. The quote suggests that computer science is not all about geniuses, but rather the hard work and collaboration of many people.
About Donald Knuth
Donald Knuth is a renowned American computer scientist and mathematician who is considered the “father of the analysis of algorithms.” He is the author of the multi-volume work “The Art of Computer Programming” and is the creator of the TeX typesetting system and the Computer Modern font family.
More quotes from Donald Knuth
There’s ways to amuse yourself while doing things and thats how I look at efficency.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
God is a challenge because there is no proof of his existence and therefore the search must continue.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
Let us change our traditional attitude to the construction of programs. Instead of imagining that our main task is to instruct a computer what to do, let us concentrate rather on explaining to human beings what we want a computer to do.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
The manuals we got from IBM would show examples of programs and I knew I could do a heck of a lot better than that. So I thought I might have some talent.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
A list is only as strong as its weakest link.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
I decry the current tendency to seek patents on algorithms. There are better ways to earn a living than to prevent other people from making use of one’s contributions to computer science.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
If you optimize everything, you will always be unhappy.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
The most important thing in the programming language is the name. A language will not succeed without a good name. I have recently invented a very good name and now I am looking for a suitable language.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
The hardest thing is to go to sleep at night, when there are so many urgent things needing to be done. A huge gap exists between what we know is possible with today’s machines and what we have so far been able to finish.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
Science is what we understand well enough to explain to a computer. Art is everything else we do.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
People think that computer science is the art of geniuses but the actual reality is the opposite, just many people doing things that build on eachother, like a wall of mini stones.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
In fact what I would like to see is thousands of computer scientists let loose to do whatever they want. That’s what really advances the field.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
An algorithm must be seen to be believed.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
Beware of bugs in the above code; I have only proved it correct, not tried it.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)
The most important thing in the kitchen is the waste paper basket and it needs to be centrally located.
American computer scientist and mathematician (born 1938)