CompSci 6: Spring 2009

Ruth Ann Chan

From saving my 2^nd grade stories on a floppy disc in a Macintosh lab and creating my 8^th grade science fair PowerPoint to being frustrated with the software used in my work-study job and keeping in touch with friends from all over the world, I have used computers as much as anyone else in my generation.

As far as programming is concerned, I have no experience besides the few Maple and Matlab problems I have done as a math major. However, just by using computers for school and work, I have noticed how much we can use them to our benefit, if programs are well-designed and well-implemented. In my work at the Duke Textbook Store, we use the computer to keep information about each textbook that we order and sell. To the annoyance of store employees, professors, and students, the system is very outdated, inaccessible, and problematic. One of the most pivotal problems I see is that we must manually sync our system to Duke ACES—information about each course name, number, instructor, enrollment—is all inputted by hand. I am convinced there must be a better way to do this.

As the articles testify, emphasis on computer science must continue to grow, especially as the relationship deepens between computing and so many other fields. In my aspiration to teach high school math, it is important that I learn content in this area very closely related to mathematics.

Ruth Ann (Trinity 2010) grew up near Los Angeles. She enjoys playground swings, mentholated gum, and singing to Jesus. Her other courses this semester are Number Theory, Statistics, Foundations of Education, Adolescent Psychology, piano lessons, and chamber ensemble.