And isn't that completely bogus too - you don't want programmers who can regurgitate algos you want ones that can take an overview and know which algos to apply and how to implement them in a timely way using reference material if needs be ... perhaps it's too hard to test for that ability in interview?
It's like upthread someone talked about engineering exams - seemingly you don't need working engineers to run through equation derivations and do arithmetic. You want them to understand the basis for the derivations and to have a mental model that will spot if the calculations are way out, for sure, but really you want them to be able to take an overview: know which factors are important, use the engineering tools they have. A practical engineer is going to be using computers to perform calculations (be that chemical processes or electronics or civil structures or whatever).
In a way I think we're on the cusp of a change in how we need to approach job focused learning. We're getting to the point where we've stood on the shoulders of so many giants that if you want to operate at the top you can't see the floor any more. By which I mean that maybe the human mind can't cope with the full vertical stack in some fields, that we need to have people either focus at the bottom - understanding the basis on which particular knowledge is built. Or understand the top - be able to work with the tools for implementation.
It's like upthread someone talked about engineering exams - seemingly you don't need working engineers to run through equation derivations and do arithmetic. You want them to understand the basis for the derivations and to have a mental model that will spot if the calculations are way out, for sure, but really you want them to be able to take an overview: know which factors are important, use the engineering tools they have. A practical engineer is going to be using computers to perform calculations (be that chemical processes or electronics or civil structures or whatever).
In a way I think we're on the cusp of a change in how we need to approach job focused learning. We're getting to the point where we've stood on the shoulders of so many giants that if you want to operate at the top you can't see the floor any more. By which I mean that maybe the human mind can't cope with the full vertical stack in some fields, that we need to have people either focus at the bottom - understanding the basis on which particular knowledge is built. Or understand the top - be able to work with the tools for implementation.
Maybe.