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Geek Culture / Inventor?

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old_School
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 06:34
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I have a question I think could be an interesting discussion for all of us. The term “inventor”, could you consider a programmer an “inventor”? After all someone who invents something is a person is creates something new. Me and my wife had a lovely discussion about this and we were unsure.

Def: A person who invented a particular process or device or who invents things as an occupation.
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Kezzla
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 08:51
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I guess if its a new process or idea that has never existed before they would be the inventor of it.

I define inventor as the first to utilize or create an idea/device/process etc.

don't get me started on inventors, remember that episode of the simpsons where homer keeps crapping on about Thomas Edison?

I get that way about Nikola Tesla. -Best inventor ever

Sometimes I like to use words out of contents
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Phaelax
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 09:34
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I think a programmer is more of a problem solver, like a civil engineer only less hated.

"You're not going crazy. You're going sane in a crazy world!" ~Tick
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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 17:09
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I'm trying to find out if you can be a programmer scientist. My maths is terrible, but I can achieve a lot with a computer program. Say for example you wanted to create Gravity. You could use the maths formula for G, but in programming you can create G in many different ways without much maths. I say that the Universe doesn't use maths, it uses pure physics based mostly on sphere interactions... particles. So I make Universe Generators based on just simple Physics. I think I could program a Universe in just a few lines of code. So that's what I'm trying to do.

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Neuro Fuzzy
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 17:17 Edited at: 1st Jan 2012 17:18
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Quote: "I say that the Universe doesn't use maths, it uses pure physics based mostly on sphere interactions... particles."

A sphere isn't math? My definition of math is anything that makes sense. A better one might be anything that compresses theorems into a set of axioms, but that doesn't sound as good xD [edit] (the reason I bring it up is because that's what "simple rules -> complex behavior" is all about)

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 17:24 Edited at: 1st Jan 2012 17:24
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Quote: "A sphere isn't math? My definition of math is anything that makes sense. A better one might be anything that compresses theorems into a set of axioms, but that doesn't sound as good xD [edit] (the reason I bring it up is because that's what "simple rules -> complex behavior" is all about)"


Maybe I should have said Point, not sphere. I don't think the Universe has sphere physics at the smallest scale. Anyway, I don't program for a sphere property either.

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BiggAdd
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 17:43 Edited at: 1st Jan 2012 17:47
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Quote: "I'm trying to find out if you can be a programmer scientist. My maths is terrible, but I can achieve a lot with a computer program"


If you can create software, I would argue that your maths isn't terrible. You might be too hard on yourself.

Your calculus or algebra might be terrible, but I would argue your discrete math ability would be much better than average.

I would also argue that programmers are engineers. And by definition, are people who are adept at applying scientific and mathematical knowledge to solve a problem.

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 18:19 Edited at: 1st Jan 2012 18:24
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Quote: "If you can create software, I would argue that your maths isn't terrible. You might be too hard on yourself.

Your calculus or algebra might be terrible, but I would argue your discrete math ability would be much better than average.

I would also argue that programmers are engineers. And by definition, are people who are adept at applying scientific and mathematical knowledge to solve a problem."


Well I'm analytical. I'm trying to program a self building universe, a bit like a Neural Network. The rules are just ridiculously simple. Here's a 50 line loop, and I think I can get this down to a much smaller loop...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggRxyHjimxM

And here's a snowflake generator, based on particles just obeying the Bose Einstein condensate rules. Press space bar....

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/pinchopaxton/Snowflake.rar

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old_School
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Posted: 1st Jan 2012 21:17
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This is what my friend had to say about the matter but still debatable I think to a degree. Think of a car. every year a new car is created but we dont think of it as a new invention but it has a patent. so by law its a new invention. So where should we draw the line?



Inventor is a legal term that is connected with patents. If a programmer has created something new, that an existing product can not lay claim to, then they should be able to patent the algorithm. In that case they would be a patented inventor. Here is an interesting article that compares the distinction between an author and an inventor.

http://www.bios.net/daisy/patentlens/g4/tutorials/205.html

Steven Bradley



Source:http://www.globalgameware.com/node/50
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Agent Dink
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Posted: 2nd Jan 2012 00:31
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I feel you can invent a new programming language or genre of game for instance, but I don't really consider a piece of software an invention.

http://lossofanonymity.wordpress.com
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MrValentine
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Posted: 3rd Jan 2012 02:35 Edited at: 3rd Jan 2012 02:35
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Pax... ntl world¿ thought they went down years ago... I think I remember someone bought them out...

EDIT

They

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Pincho Paxton
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Posted: 4th Jan 2012 16:45 Edited at: 4th Jan 2012 16:46
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Quote: "Pax... ntl world¿ thought they went down years ago... I think I remember someone bought them out...

EDIT

They"


Virgin bought them out, but they kept the name.

EDIT: Kept is a rare word huh?

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