A Computing Program for Scientists and Engineers — What is the Core Of Computing?

Abstract

The education of non computer scientists in Information Technology basics becomes more important every day. We currently see a number of related effects in the educational and job market that force us to think about the requirements of minimal IT education for an engineer or a scientist. This paper, through a case study, raises questions related to these issues. The case study is a Curriculum on Environmental Informatics, which has been developed by the author and others under a grant by the European Union and the Canadian government. From this example, the paper tries to discuss the most important common roots in IT for engineers and scientists under heavy time constraints in their IT education. It will also reflect back on what this means for “pure” computer scientists.