Computer Science department adds yet another intro sequence

 In an effort to make computer science more approachable to the general public, Brown University’s CS department has decided to create a new sequence of introductory classes for the field. Existing sequences—15/16, 17/18 and the standalone 19—are large areas of discomfort for students wanting to try out Computer Science. Weekly time spent per class ranges anywhere from 10 to 25 hours, which students describe as “a time sink” or “too much” alongside “an amount that makes me seriously jealous of the 1800s because at least they didn’t have to deal with fucking errors that pop up even when I don’t change the code.” The new introductory sequence is an attempt to alleviate some of this pain. The individual courses in this eight semester intro path are titled CSCI0000 through CSCI0007, and will reportedly be a complete change of pace from existing sequences. “There will be no work and everyone will just get A’s,” says designer of the sequence, Alan Turing. “People learn best when there are no stakes and no practice,” Turing added in justification of the new structure. The department found that one to two semesters wasn’t enough of a commitment to the field, so extending an intro sequence to eight should ensure that they really get the most students graduating in CS. “Even though each progressive course is designed to be less and less enjoyable, we will tell the students that it only gets better from here so that students feel guilty dropping the sequence in the middle,” suggests Turing. The workload is set to be low enough so that students can also pursue their true passions, whether that be business or econ or finance. A recent poll (sample size N=0 Brown students) suggests that no one is opposed to the new, exciting intro sequence.  In other news, an anonymous suggestion to President Paxon’s office suggests that if any department contains more than 50% of Brown students, they get to skip to the front of the line at Chicken Finger Friday. Image via.