LSR@Mit-Xx@sri-unix (08/18/82)
From: Larry S Rosenstein <LSR@Mit-Xx> I think that part of the reason behind the Stevens Tech computer requirement is that personal computers are the "in" thing today (along with video games). (I know nothing about the school, so this and what follows is pure speculation.) Consider the number of computer camps and the stories about them that have appeared recently. Since personal computers are becoming so popular with high school students, it is a big win for Stevens to say that they are the only school that completely integrates computers into their curriculum. Compare this with the MIT undergrad computer science program. During my undergrad years, I had only 4 classes that provided computer access (2 of these were my senior year, when the department began a new microcomputer lab). For example, the undergrad (and graduate for that matter) class on compilers did not have ANY lab component. The situation is better now that the department has its own Twenex system (and the undergrad compiler class WILL have a lab component in the coming year). A student's main interaction with computers is through one of the many research groups on campus. This is where MIT (I assume) beats Stevens Tech hands down--there are many opportunities for getting involved in all kinds of projects. This is really the only way to work on meaningful projects (problems given in classes have to be limited in scope). When I was on the MIT EE&CS Undergrad Student-Faculty committee, there as in fact a proposal mentioned to require all the Computer Science (and maybe EE's as well) to buy a personal computer. (There was discussion about the costs involved to the students; one idea was for the department to buy back computers when students graduate or to have a number of machines that students could borrow.) The idea was that with this approach, almost every EE&CS class could use the machine as a test bench, both in hardware and software. Considering that the trend in research and industry is towards personal machines, this is not a bad idea (although Atari 800's can hardly be mistaken for Lisp Machines). If I was in high school and had only the "glossy brochures" to go on, I might choose Stevens Tech over MIT (especially if I was "raised" on Ataris), simply because the former would emphasize its use of computers in the entire curriculum. Larry -------