Sorting Algorithm and Human Intuition

On Tuesday, a speaker came in and spoke to us about parallel programming. She showed us various sorting algorithms and timed the execution of each. I was interested in seeing how the whole process would unfold, haven taken AP Computer Science AB and haven been exposed to bubble sort, and merge sort.

I enjoyed the first sort the most, the one where everyone sorted themselves intuitively. I disagree with Dr. Ferrante reference to this algorithm as "chaos" and "anarchy".

The first sorting algorithm relied on human intuition and intelligence, it’s an advanced form of bubble sort, as the members of the group compare themselves to a group of members, and intuitively float to the side of the line that they feel they believe in. With nearly no idle time, skipping unnecessary steps through intuition, and a very free format, everything flowed nicely with no wasted time. No chaos or anarchy at all, rather the collective work of multiple "cores" (people), all collaborating using human intuition in a way that no core can match.

I love computer science, especially sorting algorithms and their Operating efficiencies, but there are some things that done efficiently through intuition as well, going through multiple layers of thinking and processing. It would be a mistatement to refer to these thought processes as "chaos" and "anarchy".

Dr. Ferrante still has my full respect. I thoroughly enjoyed all the other portions of the presentation. I admire her work in the field of computer science, but computer science shouldn't be compared to the full breadth of human intuition.

Best of luck everyone with your projects and presentations! :) Throughly enjoying COSMOS, and looking forward to more programs!