Computers are good at following instructions, but not at reading your mind. Donald Knuth More Quotes by Donald Knuth More Quotes From Donald Knuth Computer programming is an art, because it applies accumulated knowledge to the world, because it requires skill and ingenuity, and especially because it produces objects of beauty. A programmer who subconsciously views himself as an artist will enjoy what he does and will do it better. Donald Knuth skills views art Programming is the art of telling another human being what one wants the computer to do. Donald Knuth computer want art Random numbers should not be generated with a method chosen at random Donald Knuth method should numbers Everyday life is like programming, I guess. If you love something you can put beauty into it. Donald Knuth programming life-is-like everyday An algorithm must be seen to be believed. Donald Knuth algorithms computer-science engineering Programs are meant to be read by humans and only incidentally for computers to execute. Donald Knuth program computer humans Science is what we understand well enough to explain to a computer. Art is everything else we do. Donald Knuth math science art If you find that you're spending almost all your time on theory, start turning some attention to practical things; it will improve your theories. If you find that you're spending almost all your time on practice, start turning some attention to theoretical things; it will improve your practice. Donald Knuth spending practice attention I currently use Ubuntu Linux, on a standalone laptop - it has no Internet connection. I occasionally carry flash memory drives between this machine and the Macs that I use for network surfing and graphics; but I trust my family jewels only to Linux. Donald Knuth ubuntu jewels memories We should forget about small efficiencies, say about 97% of the time: premature optimization is the root of all evil. Donald Knuth learning roots evil AI has by now succeeded in doing essentially everything that requires 'thinking' but has failed to do most of what people and animals do 'without thinking'-that, somehow, is much harder. Donald Knuth animal people thinking Trees sprout up just about everywhere in computer science. Donald Knuth computer-science computer tree Email is a wonderful thing for people whose role in life is to be on top of things. But not for me; my role is to be on the bottom of things. What I do takes long hours of studying and uninterruptible concentration. Donald Knuth roles long people The best programs are written so that computing machines can perform them quickly and so that human beings can understand them clearly. A programmer is ideally an essayist who works with traditional aesthetic and literary forms as well as mathematical concepts, to communicate the way that an algorithm works and to convince a reader that the results will be correct. Donald Knuth algorithms machines way The book Dynamic Programming by Richard Bellman is an important, pioneering work in which a group of problems is collected together at the end of some chapters under the heading "Exercises and Research Problems," with extremely trivial questions appearing in the midst of deep, unsolved problems. It is rumored that someone once asked Dr. Bellman how to tell the exercises apart from the research problems, and he replied: "If you can solve it, it is an exercise; otherwise it's a research problem." Donald Knuth important exercise book The whole thing that makes a mathematician’s life worthwhile is that he gets the grudging admiration of three or four colleagues. Donald Knuth admiration four three The best practice is inspired by theory. Donald Knuth best-practices inspired practice If you optimize everything, you will always be unhappy. Donald Knuth unhappiness unhappy ifs We should forget about small efficiencies, say about 97% of the time: premature optimization is the root of all evil. Yet we should not pass up our opportunities in that critical 3% Donald Knuth roots evil opportunity People think that computer science is the art of geniuses but the actual reality is the opposite, just many people doing things that build on each other, like a wall of mini stones. Donald Knuth wall reality art
