Paths to Intelligence

Tuesday. August 28, 2018 - 2 mins

What’s behind door number…

When it comes to software engineering, there exists an idealistic image in my mind. One that involves a desk, a computer with at least three monitors and a giant mug of coffee. Along with challenges that are eagerly met and overcome with the help and collaboration of fellow colleagues who share in the same passion as I do. One part of computer science, and software engineering in particular, is the sheer amount of tools and technologies that are available. Facing this mountain of possibility can be quite intimidating. The particular road to go down, i.e., which set of tools and technology to master, can be a fraught decision. The way I’ve narrowed down this broad scope of potential has been to focus in on a single sub-field of computer science, this being the root node of my studies while at university. The area that piques my interest and curiosity is that of artificial intelligence.

Learning engineer

According to data compiled from linkedIn, “machine learning engineer,” is the top emerging position with a 9.8X growth. This presents itself as good news for myself, as it combines my aspirations to grasp the concepts and technologies present in machine learning, with the principles of software engineering. Although, what does the title machine learning engineer actually mean? O’Reilly puts it like this:

“They have stronger software engineering skills than typical data scientists (…) They understand software development methodology, agile practices, and the full range of tools that modern software developers use: everything from IDEs like Eclipse and IntelliJ to the components of a continuous deployment pipeline.”

The description above has a nice ring to it, speaking to the skills I aim to acquire throughout my studies in university.

This is the end (?)

On the contrary, this is only the beginning. I am on my way to becoming a computer scientist, and the big part about being a scientist, apart from measuring things, is that we never stop learning. Which is one of the main reasons I chose this life for myself, I truly love to learn. Science brings the unimaginable into the scope or reality. This is possible because science expands the perspective beyond the individual. When people come together, there is no apparent limit to how far the potential of humanity extends. As Isaac Newton said in 1675, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.”

Wyatt Hoodes

Pressured != crushed; Perplexed != despair

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