Is this the most difficult field of study?

[Snario]

To me, the problems and the knowledge, logic, and communication required to solve them far surpass those in other subjects like Physics, Chemistry, and Math (mostly because they are typically a combination of all fields). Would you guys agree?

[bbi5291]

I don't think it's meaningful to compare the difficulties of fields, because every field has both easy topics and hard topics.

At an undergraduate level, I'm certain it must depend on the school you attend. For example, at Waterloo, CS is probably harder than chemistry; but there may be schools at which the opposite is true. At a graduate level, people generally tend to rise to their own particular level of competence, so it's not really a meaningful question there. (This is why famous scientists' doctoral advisors were often famous scientists themselves.) For cutting-edge research, I believe that pure math is the hardest to reason about, theoretical physics is the hardest to understand, and CS is somewhere in between.

(Also, if the question is one of how difficult it is to master a field to a sufficient extent to be competitive in the job market, then the answer is probably that they're all equally hard, since the difficulty of getting a skilled job is based on how knowledgeable and experienced everyone else is.)

[crossley7]

I don't think that you can really make that argument as it is a different skill set. Every profession has different skills required and so it is hard to compare. Comp sci is basically an extension of mathematics in my opinion, physics is applied mathematics, chemistry is a cross between Biology and physics.

Comp sci in itself is a very diverse field with almost every other field being able to link to it. You can apply computer logic to most problems you find in other fields to automate them, but the skill required to understand the problem in the first place is at least as hard as the implementation.

In that way there really is no 1 field that is superior to others, but many different equally challenging fields

[mirhagk]

Understanding enough about computer science would unlock the secrets to artificial intelligence, that of course would easily be used to solve all the other problems.

Understanding enough about biology would explain completely how our brains work, and give us the ability to recreate life, and heal all sickness, giving us the time and resources to solve all the other problems.

Understanding enough about physics would give us the master equation, explaining all the interactions of the universe, which could then be used to solve all the other problems.

Understanding enough about mathematics would give us the ability to apply the most clever, quick and easiest algorithms to every scenario in life, increasing the effeciency of everything, and allowing us to solve all the other problems.

Understanding enough about chemistry would give us all the possible elements, and the ability to create new elements to do anything we wanted, and explain how things work, giving us the ability to solve all the other problems.

Basically my point is, science is not limited to expansion in one field, every field has MANY secrets yet to unlock. Computer science is just one of them, but your semi-right about the integration of fields being one of the most challenging, and amazing areas of research.

Also it might be curious to note that it has been mathematically proven that we will never learn everything there is to know about math. That might mean it's the most difficult field.

[evildaddy911]

crossley7 @ Tue Feb 28, 2012 10:53 pm wrote:

You can apply computer logic to most problems you find in other fields to automate them, but the skill required to understand the problem in the first place is at least as hard as the implementation.

I recently started physics, looking for a challenge. looking through the curriculum, I realized that i understand all the concepts. I learned them through programming.Personally, i think that compsci is the most difficult in terms of thinking/problem solving, but others are more difficult in other ways

[RandomLetters]

evildaddy911 @ Wed Feb 29, 2012 7:58 am wrote:

crossley7 @ Tue Feb 28, 2012 10:53 pm wrote:

You can apply computer logic to most problems you find in other fields to automate them, but the skill required to understand the problem in the first place is at least as hard as the implementation.

I recently started physics, looking for a challenge. looking through the curriculum, I realized that i understand all the concepts. I learned them through programming.Personally, i think that compsci is the most difficult in terms of thinking/problem solving, but others are more difficult in other ways

Pure math: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zermelo%E2%80%93Fraenkel_set_theory
Physics: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drag_(physics)
Biology: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Latin_phrases

[Insectoid]

Compsci introduces students to problem solving earlier than other fields. Most high school classes are pure memorization, which CS is problem solving from the get-go. It throws off the students who aren't used to actually thinking, making it appear harder. However, by uni, most classes require actual thinking.

[bbi5291]

RandomLetters @ Wed Feb 29, 2012 8:58 am wrote:

evildaddy911 @ Wed Feb 29, 2012 7:58 am wrote:

crossley7 @ Tue Feb 28, 2012 10:53 pm wrote:

You can apply computer logic to most problems you find in other fields to automate them, but the skill required to understand the problem in the first place is at least as hard as the implementation.

I recently started physics, looking for a challenge. looking through the curriculum, I realized that i understand all the concepts. I learned them through programming.Personally, i think that compsci is the most difficult in terms of thinking/problem solving, but others are more difficult in other ways

Pure math: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zermelo%E2%80%93Fraenkel_set_theory
Physics: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drag_(physics)
Biology: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Latin_phrases

You don't need to know very many Latin phrases to understand biology (there are just a few, like in vitro). Not nearly as many as you need to understand law, certainly. You do need to know some common prefixes and suffixes, though.

Also, that Wikipedia page on drag doesn't look too bad. I raise you thus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Static_forces_and_virtual-particle_exchange

[saltpro15]

Brian introduced me to this one over a year ago, but cheers. There's nothing quite as cold and austere as mathematics in my opinion.

[yoursecretninja]

The most difficult subject is probably the one you know least about.